ORANGE — It takes a village — or in this case, a town, Orange.
Recovering from a house fire doesn’t mean just buying a new home, clothes, furniture and gadgets. Pets, sentimental items and family ventures — like greenhouses and heirloom tomatoes — may be lost. Oftentimes important documents, like financial statements, birth certificates and passports, are gone, making it harder to start anew.
Will Swedberg and his 5-year-old son were able to escape a fire at their Moss Brook Road home Wednesday, with Swedberg only being able to grab the keys to save his truck after escaping out a window.
At least four fundraising campaigns have been started for the Swedberg family, and, in just two days, thousands of dollars have been raised by the community.
Nathan Holesovsky, who has been friends with the Swedberg family for years, started an online GoFundMe page that has already raised $6,290, and Louis Bushay started another that had raised $1,875 as of Friday night.
Witty’s Funeral Home has been collecting checks to cash and give money to the family, and Old Home Day in neighboring Wendell will have a collection site for clothing and other items Saturday. The Salvation Army in Athol has also been helping the Swedbergs.
“When there’s a real need, people respond, which is really awesome,” said Holesovsky, who said he was surprised his fundraiser passed the halfway mark to its $10,000 goal in less than 48 hours. “I didn’t know what to expect.”
Holesovsky said he has known the Swedbergs for a long time — his wife was Kris Swedberg’s roommate in college, and Kris and Will’s parents, Fred and Elizabeth Swedberg, attend the same church as Holesovsky.
Holesovsky said the family is staying positive, and said he was overjoyed to learn Fred would still be playing piano at the Second Baptist Church in South Hadley on Sunday.
Fred and Elizabeth, the homeowners, as well as their daughter, Kris, were out of town during the fire. Will and his son escaped from the building after a passing motorist noticed the beginnings of a fire, stopped and banged on the door shortly before 7 a.m.
“Most of the family was on vacation, thank God,” Holesovsky said. “I think that’s a miracle in itself, that they weren’t all in there in different rooms and having to get out.”
Tom Smith at Witty’s Funeral Home did not give a full tally of how much money its fundraiser has brought in, but said that people have been stopping by regularly to hand-deliver checks, as well as sending them in the mail. Owner Jeff Cole said Witty’s has been holding such fundraisers for families recovering from house fires over the last 12 years, and it’s typical to raise anywhere from $2,000 to $5,000.
“People know that if there is a fire, this is where they come to donate,” said Smith, adding that people from nearby towns like Northfield frequently donate after a fire, even if they don’t know the family receiving the money.
“I’ve had one lady stop by and say, ‘I have $2.38 left from my Social Security check, and I want to give it to the family,’” Smith said.
Although he couldn’t speak for the Swedbergs, Smith and Cole both said obtaining new IDs, bank cards, passports and other documents is one of the biggest things they see people struggle with after a fire, which is why they give the money in cash. Oftentimes, Smith said, getting a new document requires someone to have a different document to prove who they are — a passport to get a new driver’s license, for example. But, if everything’s gone, it can be a time-consuming struggle, Smith said.
Moss Brook Road is in a rural area of Orange without fire hydrants. According to a statement from the Orange Fire Department, only about one-third of the town is serviceable by fire hydrants. Around 136,000 gallons of water had to be pumped from a pond roughly 2.3 miles away to fight the fire, which, according to the state Fire Marshal’s Office, was started by burning debris that had not been fully extinguished, eventually spreading to the home.
Donations may be made through the following fundraisers:
■Bring or send checks to Witty’s Funeral Home, 158 South Main St., Orange. Make checks out to Witty’s Funeral Home, and put “Swedberg” or “Fire Fund” in the memo line. Checks will be cashed and money given directly to the Swedbergs.
■Donate online to Nathan Holesovsky’s GoFundMe campaign at www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-the-swedburgs-after-house-fire.
■Donate online to Louis Bushay’s GoFundMe campaign at www.gofundme.com/f/swedburg-family-home-fire.
■Donate clothing and other items, as well as cash, at Wendell Old Home Day on Saturday starting at 8:30 a.m., at the collection site at the festival in the center of Wendell.
Reach David McLellan dmclellan@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 268.