Family devastated by fire back on their feet due to incredible community support

Caitlin Chanell and her family have been overwhelmed by the amount of community support they have received since a house fire forced them from their rented Osoyoos home three weeks ago. Last Friday, Chanell, several friends and these four members of the Osoyoos Coyotes helped clean up the mess caused by the fire and move whatever items were salvageable into her family’s new home in Osoyoos. The Coyotes’ players assisting Chanell (from left) included Kaleb Comishin, Bryson Cecconi, Connor Onstein and Sam Reinbolt. (Keith Lacey photo)

Caitlin Chanell, her husband Brad and their four children won’t ever forget the kindness and generosity shown to them by the residents of Osoyoos since a fire forced them from their rented home three weeks ago.

Last Friday, Chanell and a large group of friends – as well as four members of the Osoyoos Coyotes who volunteered their services – returned to the home her family rented on 70^th Avenue in Osoyoos to salvage the items that weren’t destroyed in the fire.

The good news is Chanell and her family – that includes three young children – have found a new place to live in Osoyoos and they have been blessed with a seemingly endless amount of donated goods since the fire forced them from their home the morning of Jan. 17.

“The amount of community support we’ve received has just been incredible,” said Chanell. “We lost pretty much everything in the fire and for complete strangers to come forward and donate so many things to our family is something we will never forget.”

Chanell and her family moved to Osoyoos last June from White Rock as she and her husband had talked about moving to this community for several years, she said.

“Like everyone else, we loved coming to Osoyoos on vacation for many years,” she said. “My husband and I had talked about moving here for a really long time because we were looking for a quieter environment to raise our kids.

“We had placed our name on a waiting list for a place to live with a lady from ReMax and finally last spring we got a call that she had a house for us, so we packed up our things and moved to Osoyoos last June.”

Her husband had found a full-time job, all three of her younger children were enrolled and doing well at Osoyoos Elementary School and life in Osoyoos was wonderful until the fire rocked their world, she said.

“We were loving life and everything was good,” she said. “I’ve always been afraid of fire, like everyone else, and you never think it’s going to happen to you, but it did happen and you’re devastated.”

The fire was caused by a faulty furnace and the entire house suffered severe smoke damage, which destroyed most of their material possessions, she said.

The amount of donations they have received has been staggering and they have pretty much everything they need to get back on their feet now that they’ve found a new place to live, she said.

Chanell said she wanted to thank everyone who has made donations to help her family, but singled out a few people for special praise.

Town councillor Mike Campol, the founder of Spirit of the Game, which assists local families with funding to participate in minor sports and community events, generously offered free accommodations at Nk’ Mip at Spirit Ridge Resort for several days, she said.

Osoyoos Elementary School principal David Foster and the entire staff at the school have provided wonderful support for her children and family throughout this horrible ordeal, she said.

The three women who founded the Osoyoos Gift Cupboard –Brenda Dorosz, Gaye Horn and Jen Shiels – also helped organize a fundraising and donation campaign with tremendous community support, she said.

Chanell said the amazing community support has restored her faith in humanity and convinced her family that Osoyoos is where they will continue to call home for many years to come.

“We were thinking about maybe going back to the Lower Mainland after the fire happened, but that all changed once we got this incredible support,” she said. “The people in Osoyoos have been incredibly supportive and we couldn’t think of leaving. I think Osoyoos is going to be home for a really long time. We love it here.”

Chanell said she personally plans on giving back to the community as her way of saying thanks.

“This has been a very valuable life experience personally,” she said. “I’m going to start volunteering with the Gift Cupboard and other community groups.

“I also want to spread the message of how important it is to get tenants’ insurance. We didn’t have any because you honestly don’t think anything like this can happen to you, but it did.”

The fact four young hockey players from the Coyotes – Kaleb Comishin, Bryson Cecconi, Connor Onstein and Sam Reinbolt – would show up unannounced to volunteer to assist her family in cleaning up the mess caused by the fire and help them move into their new home is another shining example of why Osoyoos is a great place to live and raise a family, she said.

“They’re such nice boys,” she said. “They were asked to drop by and help out and they just showed up without asking any questions. I really appreciate it.”

Randy Bedard, owner of the Coyotes’ franchise, said players are asked to donate their time on a regular basis and he’s thrilled four of them volunteered their time to help a family in need.

“Some of the kids are in school, some of them work and some have a little more time on their hands and they try not to say no when asked to help out in the community,” he said. “I’m pretty proud of the kids on this team because they never cause trouble, they’re a tight group and they’re good boys who try and give back to the community that shows them such wonderful support.”

KEITH LACEY

Osoyoos Times