10 SOLERA DIAMOND VALLEY | OCTOBER 2016
By Alan Siegel, Resident
The Blue Cut Fire was a wildfire in the Cajon Pass that was first
reported on Aug. 16, 2016. The fire spread quickly in the 100 degree
heat with 30 mph winds. Within two days, on Aug. 18, 82,000
residents had to be evacuated.
Dennis and Joan Kay, SDV residents, were deeply moved by what
they saw on the news. "What would you do if that happened to you?"
Joan asked me. She kept thinking about how horrible and devastating
that would be. Coincidently, Joan's neighbor down the street had told
Joan that she was cleaning out her closet. Joan told her to hang on
to it and decided to put together a clothing drive for the fire victims.
On Aug. 21, just five days after the fire had started and three days
after 82,000 residents had been evacuated, Joan and Dennis put an
email blast out organizing a clothing drive on Aug. 25.
So on Aug. 25, from 10 am to 3 pm Dennis, Joan and some friends
including but not limited to Hilary, Edie and Kathy, collected and
donated a trailer full of clothing directly to Tammy Poe, Lieutenant
in the Salvation Army, with the explicit agreement that these clothes
were specifically designated to go to the victims of the Blue Cut Fire.
The compassion and kindheartedness of the Kays and their
friends have made SDV look good. Hopefully, individually and as a
community, we will follow the example of Dennis and Joan Kay and
continue to demonstrate the same kind of generosity and charity to
our neighbors in need.
The Shirts Off Their Backs: Inspiring Generosity
