A fire destroyed a house three doors down from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ chapel in Ford Street, Opotiki on 28 April. The house was home to a large extended family.
Community support agencies were contacted for help. One such agency is managed by Opotiki Mormon, Maude Maxwell.
At church on Sunday Maxwell put out a request to members of the congregation for any donations that would help the family. Within two hours members had gone to their homes and returned with enough goods to fill a trailer and meet some of the family’s immediate needs.
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Such items as clothing, food (including locally caught fish), cutlery and utensils, toys, bedding, linen and grocery items were delivered to their emergency housing by local Church leaders Tere No’oroa and Wayne Fermanis.
The family expressed their surprise and gratitude for the donations received from their Mormon neighbours.
The Church was one of the first organisations to respond to the tragedy. Later other support groups were able to help the family get back on their feet.
One member of the family, aged 33, is recovering from third degree burns to his arms and a three-year-old child was also admitted to hospital. There were no fatalities during the fire.