In the middle of the night on Sunday, October 9, a house fire left six people in Bishop’s Falls without a home. Luckily, the residents of the small town in Newfoundland all had places they could stay that night. That morning, Thanksgiving, the local Red Cross was called.
Linda Kelland, the Disaster Management District Community Supervisor, received a call notifying the Red Cross about the fire and the people impacted. The next step was to locate the residents so Linda’s team could meet with them and discuss how the Red Cross could offer support.
The fire had grown out of control quickly, and the residents – two couples and a mother and her one-year-old – were forced to leave quickly, some without even having a chance to grab shoes. The building itself, as well as everything inside, was a total loss.
It was a holiday, but Linda said it was very clear that, “these people really couldn’t wait until stores opened tomorrow.” She got in touch with Walmart in Grand Falls-Windsor, the closest location to Bishop Falls.
Ivan, the assistant store manager, had previously never worked with the Red Cross when it came to responding outside of regular hours. He was quick to return Linda’s call, saying “whenever you’re ready I will come to the store and open for you”.
The families were able to go to Walmart that day and pick up the essential items they would need.
“Having lost everything, to be able to get things like clothes that belong to you, and aren’t just something you’ve borrowed, means a lot.” Linda said.
In a follow up visit to the Red Cross with Disaster Management volunteer Valerie Marjorie Hewitt (photographed above), the families mentioned how grateful they were that Walmart would allow them to get this important shopping done on a holiday – and that Ivan was willing to come in on his day off.