STANWOOD, Wash. - The heavy jacket might keep flames away but firefighters say it doesn't insulate them from the sadness they see on the job, the helplessness a family feels when they realize what fire destroyed.
“Some incidents kind of hit home,” said Ryan Clifton, Snohomish Fire District 19.
In one of those incidents just a few weeks before Christmas, the Kruick family lost everything, including two of their pets.
"I mean they really were left with nothing,” said Clifton.
The family had a place to stay, but everything they owned was destroyed.
"I have a son, a couple of other people have kids, and we just thought what would we feel like if our kids woke up in the morning and didn't have any presents,” said Clifton.
That thought smoldered in their heads for days, until it finally sparked action.
"We just kind of took one of the fire helmets and turned it upside down and passed the hat,” said Clifton.
Soon everybody was chipping in, the fire captain's daughter, Sofia Bellizzi, raised money at her school.
"I want them to know that I care and my class cares and my school cares,” she said.
They took the money to Target and then loaded up Santa.
They were greeted with cheers instead of tears.
Family members have given them a place to stay, but it hasn't been easy.
"We didn't really have much of anything, we were able to scavenge a few things but pretty much everything's a total loss,” said Cheri Kruick
They lost all their stuff, but they didn't lose sight of what was saved from the flames.
"I could have lost my daughter, my husband, I'm just thankful they're there for us, thank you everybody,” said Kruick.
The family has insurance for their mobile home but it does not cover the contents.
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