Facing a lost job and home, Colorado mother finds support from restaurant coworkers

"Bluegrass Coffee and Bourbon Lounge" has been an Arvada staple for years. The Kentucky-themed restaurant has locations in Olde Town Arvada and the Candelas neighborhood. But soon, the restaurant will be saying goodbye, and it hopes the community can help some of its employees before it does.

The general manager of both Bluegrass lounges says the owners run multiple businesses out of state and no longer have the time or money to keep this one open. When both Bluegrass locations close their doors at the end of this month, about 50 employees will be out of a job.

This week, a fire made things even worse for two of those employees.

"Losing my job, losing my house, having three kids and being a single mother is not easy," said Yohanna "Carolina" Bracho, kitchen manager at Bluegrass Lounge, speaking through a translator.

Bracho doesn't know how she'll keep food on the table and a roof over her three children's heads.

She and her oldest child work at Bluegrass Lounge in Olde Town Arvada. But this month, the lounge will close its doors, leaving Bracho and the other employees without jobs.

"I feel like everything just gathered together," Bracho said.

"The owners, there's some big commitments coming up and bills to pay, and they ultimately decided the best plan for them was to close it down," said Josh Schwartz, general manager of Bluegrass Lounge.

"I am looking for a new job," Bracho said.

Monday night, Bracho was cooking plantains in her Arvada apartment when she says she stepped away for only a moment to take her youngest to the bathroom.

"I heard a big boom and kind of an explosion in the kitchen," Bracho said. "It was such a big fire that my first instinct was not to put out the fire, but to grab my kids and get out of there."

Bracho says a neighbor extinguished the fire, and first responders soon arrived, but told her she couldn't take any belongings because of asbestos concerns.

"There was a lot of dust and a lot of ashes everywhere throughout the apartment," Bracho said. "My house is gone. All my belongings are gone, but my kids are safe."

Bracho says her apartment complex, The Iris, allowed her to move into another unit, but says they asked her to pay a new security deposit and first month's rent. Records she shared from her renters insurance say the apartment charged her a "$500 deposit transfer fee plus $897.80 and $150 for the move," totaling $1,547.80.

"I don't have money to pay another deposit," Bracho said.

Bracho's boss, Josh Schwartz, tried to help out.

"That sounded a little fishy to me, and we wanted to call the apartment complex right away to see if we could figure something out for them," said Schwartz. "The manager was going to call me back at 5 p.m. on Wednesday. I had not heard word from them since."

CBS Colorado called and emailed The Iris but hasn't heard back yet.

But within an hour of CBS reaching out, Yohanna says the apartment canceled that lease and sent her a new one. This one appears to have at least removed the $150 moving fee, but the remaining charges now total about $1,500.

"They're not charging the deposit, but they are charging me October again that I had already paid originally," Bracho said.

"We decided to get into action right away," said Schwartz.

Bluegrass employees are working to help the family, starting an online fundraiser and collecting donations.

"So many of the employees and customers have already brought in air beds, towels, you know, cosmetics and toiletries," said Schwartz.

"I'm overwhelmed with emotions. I'm really sad," Bracho said.

Even as Yohanna fears a future with no job or home, she's grateful for the support of the Bluegrass community, a family that will still be there for her, even after the lounge closes.

"They're my family," Bracho said.

"I'm hoping they ultimately find something for Carolina and her three children where she can be comfortable, and they can stay. The kids can stay in the same school district, and they can rebuild their lives together," said Schwartz, "knowing after these doors close that our relationships can still foster."

Arvada Fire Protection District says the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

The last day the Olde Town Arvada Bluegrass location will be open is Oct. 31. For Candelas, it's Oct. 30.