We need to pay it forward.
One day in June, we walked across the street to meet our new neighbors. We do this because once we were strangers on the block and were welcomed by those who were here before us, so we kick the ball forward.
We say hello and we exchange names. Hands are shaken and welcomes are met with kindness. We chat and discuss the hot weather. A breeze drifts past our noses carrying a wispy scent of fire. We nod and agree that it must be those annoying fires in Canada.
“I didn’t think it could be this bad,” I said.
We found out the next day it was worse. A six-unit condominium unit off Indianwood Boulevard, little more than 1 mile from where we stood that soft summer night, had been ravaged by fire. That acrid smell that stroked our senses as we enjoyed pleasantries was a tardy remainder of what was a disaster for 19 people who were now homeless.
One can see the blackened ruins from the east windows of Victory Christian International Ministries Church, which until last year was the home of Faith United Protestant Church, whose congregation moved to a smaller building,
When the president of Victory church, Apostle Carl White Jr., saw the destruction, he went to work. As with all those who need some help after a fire, the Red Cross supplies some basic necessities, including clothes and temporary housing in nearby motels. For White, that was not enough. His church played it forward.
“We own two buildings and we allow them to stay there without rent,” he said.
Sheila Spaulding, who lived in one of the units on Indianwood, was awakened by firefighters who told residents to get out of the building immediately. That’s standard practice. You save a life before you fight the fire. Spaulding says she lost everything except for her pajamas and shoes she wore exiting the building. She now resides in a church-owned apartment in Calumet City but must commute for more than one hour each way to her job in the Carol Stream post office.
Kara Mack, another fire refugee, is now in a house in Phoenix, owned by the church.
Kewana Valentine and her 8-year-old and 5-month-old children, are staying in a motel with the church extending their stay, while Jahnnise Farr getting financial help for food and clothing.
The Michael Broughton family now lives with relatives in Crete. Kyra Mack found a place to stay in Phoenix.
A Fire Department news release said the fire, which spread quickly through the open attic space over all the units, was caused by an overloaded power strip in the apartment of actor Eva Imoniruwe and her four children. She told Southtown reporter Alexandra Kukulka she heard that her apartment was ablaze shortly after a performance in a Court Theatre in Chicago. Kukulka reported a GoFundMe page on social media to aid the family.
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The six-apartment unit is part of the 125-plus units of Glen Arbor Condominiums, which is almost as old as the 74-year-old community. Between mandatory inspections by both the state and insurers, it may be months before a decision is reached on rebuilding.
Shortly after the fire, village spokesperson Joshua Vinson announced the start of a drive to collect nonperishable food times, clothing and toiletries for those displaced by the blaze. Bins were installed in the Village Hall for all donations. The bags, boxes and paper bags are housed in a basement office, awaiting only a complete sorting of items.
From a personal standpoint, we know that fire is the great destroyer. Some five years ago, an early morning blaze tore through the house on Lakewood Drive occupied by our son and daughter-in-law. We got a phone call from Elisabeth with the first sips of our morning coffee.
“How bad,” I asked.
“It’s all gone,” was her reply.
Clothing, furniture, pictures and all the trivial things that compose a lifetime of memories were ashes. Later in the day, while she sat in a chair numbly looking at the charred remains, a woman walked by and put two $100 bills in her hand and walked away.
Whether it is a welcome or an offer of hope in the face of despair, we still pay it forward.
Jerry Shnay is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.