Family of 15 left homeless after SLO County fire on Fourth of July. Here’s how you can help

Abel Gonzalez Vazquez, his wife and six children were in their respective beds when a stray spark from a firework set their San Miguel home ablaze.

The spark first landed on a pile of trash bags, traveled to some hay and then caught the house on fire, Gonzalez Vazquez told The Tribune in Spanish.

The destruction from the fire displaced a total of 15 people. In addition to the Gonzalez Vazquez family, seven extended relatives lived in the home.

The fireworks did not belong to anyone in the family.

“We don’t buy any of that stuff,” Gonzalez Vazquez said. “It was someone else’s. I don’t even know whose it was.”

Fireworks are permitted in parts of unincorporated San Luis Obispo County, including in San Miguel.

The fire destroyed the family’s home, wrecking the roof and leaving the young family without shelter, Gonzalez Vazquez said.

The children are Ismael, 12; Bernardino, 9; Elisia, 7; Fabian, 4; Santiago, 3, and Elith, 1.

The Gonzalez Vazquez family was unharmed and was able to retrieve dishware and other belongings from the home after the fire was extinguished.

Teacher starts fundraiser for SLO County family

When Amy Loewen, who teaches sixth grade at Lillian Larsen Elementary School in San Miguel, heard about Monday’s house fire, she drove over to the area around 10:30 p.m. that night to see if any of her students were impacted.

Loewen said she was heartbroken to see the charred remains of the former home of Ismael Gonzalez Vazquez, who was her student in fifth and sixth grade.

The Gonzalez Vazquez family moved to San Miguel last year and the children have thrived as students at Lillian Larsen Elementary, Loewen said.

“I really want them to stay in the community,” she said.

Loewen said she connected with community members to help the family find temporary shelter after the fire destroyed their home on Monday night.

“We’re trying to look for an apartment or somewhere to sleep,” Gonzalez Vazquez said. “A home is the most important thing.”

Since the fire, Loewen has been keeping up with the Gonzalez Vazquez family and dropped off gift cards and food for the family of eight while they searched for more permanent shelter.

“They’re just grateful for anything,” Loewen said, adding that the family has remained strong despite the crisis.

How to help the San Miguel family

The Gonzalez Vazquez family is now in need of donations.

The North County Christian Thrift Store in Atascadero is accepting donations such as clothing, shoes and blankets on behalf of the family.

Community members have been dropping off clothing, dishware and other donations for the family at the Fuente de Agua Viva Church, an Assembly of God church in San Miguel, but the family does not currently have any place to store these goods, Loewen said.

Community members should forego physical donations and instead drop off gift cards to stores such as Food For Less, Walmart or Ross so the family can purchase new food, infant supplies and clothing, she said.

At the end of the day, what the family needs is permanent housing, Abel Gonzalez Vazquez said.

“A home is all that we need,” he said. “That’s the only thing that we’re looking for right now.”

Loewen set up a GoFundMe page on behalf of the family which has been shared on Facebook. Donations can be made at gofund.me/00a97bfd.

The fundraiser had raised more than $7,200 toward a goal of $8,570 as of 10:45 a.m. Wednesday.

The North County Neighbor Aid program, which is part of the Center for Family Strengthening in San Luis Obispo, is collecting donations on behalf of the family that will then be distributed to them.

“We scrape and find whatever money we have and we have options in front of us due to the generosity of the community,” Center for Family Strengthening Executive Director Lisa Fraser said.

Donations for the Gonzalez Vazquez family can be given through the North County NeighborAid program at donorbox.org/north-county-womenade. Click “write us a comment” and add “San Miguel Family” or “San Miguel Fire” to designate where the donation should be distributed.

The organization had raised $234.57 toward a $15,000 goal as of 10:45 a.m. Wednesday.

Anyone with leads on housing can contact Tribune reporter Mariana Duran at mduran@thetribunenews.com.