By ANEEKA SIMONIS
THE roof has collapsed in on their Pakenham home, they’ve lost all of their furniture and sentimental paintings by their children – but these brave parents will soldier on.
Melinda Reid, 29, and her husband Scott Reid, 27, recalled the feeling they had when a family member told them their Belvedere Drive home was on fire.
They were in Morwell with their son Bailey, 3, and their daughter Jasmine, 5, was at kinder when the nightmare call rang through after 4.30pm on Monday 30 November.
They have lost nearly all their material possessions – but couldn’t be more thankful that everyone is safe, including their pets.
“It’s been such a big rollercoaster. I did all my crying yesterday but now I know – there is nothing we can do,” Melinda said.
The fire, which originated along the fence line at the left side of the home, has gutted the home, with the roof caving in.
One casualty of the fire was Jasmine’s favourite toy – a purple dog named Violet.
But in true Pakenham form, the community have stretched their arms around the Reid family, with a constant line of strangers coming to the home to express their sympathy and drop off necessities including toiletries and toys for the kids – including a new Violet dog for Jasmine.
“We are overwhelmed. People keep dropping things off here, even strangers,” Melinda said.
But sadly for the kids, who celebrated their birthdays in recent weeks, the majority of their new toys were lost in the flames.
Their parents scoured through the home to salvage what they could – but came back largely empty handed.
“Bailey is devastated. When we were in there, he was really worried the roof was going to cave in on us. He didn’t want us to be in there. He’s very quiet which is unusual for him,” Melinda said.
Scott is determined to make Christmas a happy one for his family, detailing plans to inspect a new rental home barely 24 hours after the nightmare blaze and assuring his kids they will still go camping down the Murray River over New Year.
“We are still up. At the end of the day, we lost material things. We are fine, the kids are fine,” he said.
“The Christmas gifts are still on layby, so Santa can still come.”
Though the family intend to rebuild their lives as seamlessly as possible, it will take time for them to re-establish following the significant loss.
Melinda’s sister Rhianon Williams set up a fund-raiser account for the family to ensure they have as normal a Christmas as possible.
If you would like to donate to the family’s recovery effort, visit https://www.gofundme.com/fcc34ybs
The family made a special thank-you to a fire-fighter who saved their goldfish – Anna and Elsa, while their dog Dozer also made a safe escape.
