The residents of Kilmarnock Crescent in Lynn Valley banded together last weekend to help those displaced by the massive wildfire that tore through Fort McMurray earlier this month.
About eight households on the tight-knit North Vancouver street pooled their efforts to hold a garage sale, bake sale and lemonade stand at the home of Kiri Marr on Saturday, May 14. The end-of-day tally was $800, far exceeding the residents’ initial goal of $500, and all proceeds went to the Canadian Red Cross, which is providing relief to evacuees.
“We had neighbours from up and down the street contributing time and stuff and cookies for the bake sale and it was a really great event,” says Kilmarnock resident and garage sale co-organizer Linda Munro.
Children’s goods, baby gear and household items were up for sale and organizers spread the word about the event online via local moms’ groups and buy-and-sell sites.
“None of us involved had any connection to Fort McMurray, but it was just something we were touched to do after having seen the footage,” Munro explains.
News of the Alberta wildfire took her back to the time she got trapped in Osoyoos last summer when nearby blazes in the Okanagan Valley shut down the local highway.
“I had this real feeling of connection and fear for these families in Fort Mac,” she says.
The idea to hold a neighbourhood garage sale first came about because Marr had collected some baby and kids’ goods to donate to Fort McMurray victims, but learned those types of items were not being accepted. Still, she wanted to help somehow.
“Kiri just wanted to put her care into action and decided to run with the garage sale, so we’re really happy with how it all turned out,” Munro says.
