This is the charred remains of the house of Charles Parker. He and his wife escaped the fire with just the clothes on their back. All of their possessions gone.
“As I was coming out the living room, with a cloud of smoke, but the good Lord was with me, to see that the front door was open. And got me on out towards the front door cause I couldn’t hardly see,” said Parker.
Parker is a custodian at the University; a place where he has been for 13 years.
“And I always tell the students, I always have them laughing that this is my house,” laughed Parker.
How much do the students love Parker. Well we were able to talk to a few of them.
“Every time you see him, there is always something. Something to laugh about. Something to joke about, and he always has a smile on his face. To see something like this happen to him is devastating,” said Andrew Ramirez, the School of Pharmacy Student Council President.
“To start over from scratch and right as we are going into the holidays is terrible and I just want everyone to know that this is someone that truly truly deserves help and in any way and any capacity,” said longtime friend Cecelia Gonzales.
The students of the School of Pharmacy have set up a Go Fund Me account.
“We made sure we got the alumni involved, cause they know him too. They have known him for years and to get them involved to let them know what had happened to him…donations just started pouring in,” said Ramirez.
“I really appreciate that. I really appreciate that, and in my heart go out to that and I always learned from my mom the way you carry yourself you know in the right way,” said Parker.
Here is a link to the Go Fund Me account:
https://www.gofundme.com/skj6s-house-fire-lost-everything
