A Shuswap woman is spearheading a region-wide effort to get supplies to Lytton residents displaced by the June 30 wildfire that destroyed most of the town.
Angela Bourgeois and her husband are the administrators of the Shuswap Everything Friendly Goes Facebook group, which currently has around 18,500 members.
By making detailed and frequently updated posts on the group, Bourgeois effectively centralized Shuswap donation efforts.
She also reached out to Shuswap businesses and many offered their spaces as a supply drop off point, such as Shuswap Laundromat in Salmon Arm.
Many community members have now offered to deliver supplies in their vehicles too.
Bourgeois said the group, and the Shuswap community as a whole, are the ones who deserve credit for helping folks from Lytton.
“It blows my mind every day how helpful they are,” said Bourgeois.
On July 2, Bourgeois made a trip to a drop-off point in Kamloops to deliver some of the supplies people had donated. Her daughter Izzy came along. Bourgeois said Izzy was helping her out all day.
Wildfires have struck close to home for Bourgeois. Her parents were residents of Fort McMurray when a terrible wildfire tore through the area in 2016.
She said helping those affected by wildfires is a cause close to her heart and that she wants to repay the kindness that others showed her family.
It’s not too late to help, as more trucks of supplies will be heading out in the coming days. The most important things evacuees need right now are air mattresses, pillows and blankets, said Bourgeois.
Those wanting to contribute can find the Shuswap Everything Friendly Goes Facebook group at this link, where Bourgeois is keeping information related to donation efforts in the pinned post.
Read more: Train derails east of Golden
Read more: Salmon Arm man devastated after fire destroys Lytton First Nation community
@roman_reportszachary.roman@saobserver.net
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