Community donates truck, equipment to landscaper displaced by Almeda Fire

WHITE CITY, Ore. — Like most people in the Rogue Valley, landscaper Martin Silvia and his family woke up on September 8, 2020, like any other day. In California with his family, he had no idea what he was coming home to.

“He was pretty worried,” said Silvia’s sister-in-law Yoana Martinez. “They lost everything.”

Not only did Silva lose his home in the Almeda Fire, but he also lost all of his equipment too. Martinez volunteered to help interpret for Spanish speakers affected by the fires but never imagined her family being on the receiving end.

“She messaged me and she’s like, ‘I would love to help, I’m bilingual, my schedule’s a little funny because several members of my family lost everything,'” said organizer Haley Maddox. “I thought well, let’s see if we can drum up a little bit of momentum and try to get some shovels, some rakes, you know just a few things and then that’s kind of where everything kind of exploded.”

“We put it out there, put it on Facebook, put it out to the community and they rallied,” said Tyler Maddox.

Strangers, community members, businesses, even people from out of state donated items and money. They were able to get Silvia not only a truck but a trailer full of equipment. An act of kindness that has left Silvia speechless. “I’m happy for people who helped me,” he said. “Thanks, everybody for everything.”

If you want to donate to the Silvia family, Haley said you can message her on Facebook.

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