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Bristol girl, 7, gets gifts after family loses everything in fire
A Croydon business and community members organized a surprise gift parade and fundraiser for a 7-year-old girl and other families affected by a recent fire in Bristol.
CROYDON, Pa. - A Croydon business and community members brought Christmas in March to a 7-year-old girl whose family lost everything in a recent fire.
Community rallies to support young fire survivor
What we know:
Levittown Fire Rescue led the way for Santa Claus to arrive in Croydon on a sleigh, all for 7-year-old Hope.
The fire happened March 2 on the 300 block of Dorrance Street in Bristol. Officials said at least five homes were affected and a duplex was completely destroyed.
A 75-year-old woman died in the fire.
Hope's family escaped safely but lost all of their belongings. She was especially upset about losing her toys.
The community came together to gift her new ones, including a Barbie Dream House.
Santa handed gifts to Hope and said, "It's a lot right now. Just as long as she is happy that is all I care about."
Hope’s grandmother, Wendy Mount, said, "She wanted to open them already at the car." Mount also shared that the family just found a new place to live and furniture is being donated.
Mount said, "It is overwhelming. It is just so nice how everyone came together and how kind people are. We are very appreciative."
The owner of Giavonni's Dillicious Pickles in Croydon, Gabrielle Favoroso, came up with the idea for the surprise after her own business was closed for more than a month due to flooding.
Favoroso said, "And then our tragedy hit right next door in our community in Bristol, and we wanted to jump in and help." She posted her idea on social media and quickly saw donations and gifts pour in.
"I said if ten of us make a ten dollar donation, we can get this dollhouse and we saw it was on sale online and within 26 minutes we had Venmo donations in. Then people started dropping off gifts to go with it," said Favoroso.
Favoroso said, "I got chills, my eyes, everything," describing the feeling of seeing the community come together. She added, "I hope she realized how much loved she is and how much the disaster that she had and how positive she’s been about the whole situation that the community loves her and came together and saved Christmas in March."
Neighbors and local businesses stepped in quickly to help Hope and her family start over after the devastating fire.
Local efforts to help all affected families
The fire not only destroyed homes but also took a life and left several families with nothing. Community support is helping these families recover and rebuild.
A local business owner, even while facing her own challenges, helped organize the effort to bring comfort to a child in need. The upcoming fundraiser aims to provide continued support for all families impacted by the fire.
The community’s response highlights how people can come together in times of crisis to make a difference for their neighbors.
What you can do:
To help raise money for the victims of the fire, Bristol Elks is hosting a fundraiser dinner featuring meatballs and sausage pasta with dessert on Sunday, March 15 from 4 p.m to 8 p.m. All proceeds will go directly to the victims.
The Source: Information from Bristol Borough Police, Bristol Borough Fire and Giavonni's Dillicious Pickles.