Fire loss erased by holiday gifts
Malcolm Hall
malcolm.hall@cantonrep.com
CANTON Months ago, the prospects of a bountiful Christmas looked a little bleak for young Serenity Wallace after a house fire wiped out pretty much all of her family's possessions.
But Serenity's spirits were lifted a bit this week as she suddenly received a bag of new stuffed animals to cherish, along with clothing and other toys. Like gift-bearing elves, three representatives of a charitable group known as Founding Fathers Motorcycle Club dropped in on the home of the child's grandmother, Rebecca Diamond. The motorcycle club members came with gifts for Serenity, whose second birthday is Friday, and her parents.
One of the Founding Fathers members, Kenny Brown, happens to work at Aultman Hospital with Diamond. Brown heard accounts of how the October fire ravaged the two-story home of Ennis Wallace, who is Diamond's son and Serenity's father.
"We were having a meeting," said John Van Gorder of Hudson, sergeant at-arms for the Founding Fathers. "Kenny said he knew someone that needs help. We were going to reach out and see what we could do to help them. We had some money from our club funds that we put in. We did personal purchases as well. We kind of got an idea of what they were looking for."
The fire was at a house in the 1400 block of Second Street NE Ennis Wallace had been renting. When the flames broke out, he happened to be on the other side of town with Serenity's mother, Shacora Blair. While the building remains standing, it is severely charred.
"They (investigators) said arson," Diamond said. "It was burning for a while. It was a flash-over. If they had been there, they would have died. Nothing was salvageable. They lost everything."
Diamond lives a short distance from the burned-out house in the same northeast-section neighborhood. She is a registered nurse. Brown is a paramedic.
"Every year we find something special to give," said Brown, treasurer of the motorcycle club, explaining how Founding Fathers became involved. "Our primary thing is for the veterans to help them out."
Brown also is with the North Canton Fire Department. Founding Fathers Motorcycle Club takes in members from throughout Northeast Ohio.
Ennis Wallace said he has no idea who set the fire to the house.
But the charity from the motorcycle club "was a blessing," Wallace, 20, said. "We already got her a little bit of stuff. But now she is set. I have been trying to get over it (fire) every day. Right before that, I had lost my job."
He and Blair, 19, got gift cards and gifts from the motorcycle club.
"It is all about spreading good will," said Brian Scheuermann of Berea, president of Founding Fathers Motorcycle Club. "If this would have happened in the middle of summer, we would have done the same thing. Giving a helping hand should be a year-round thing."
Reach Malcolm at 330-580-8305
or malcolm.hall@cantonrep.com
On Twitter: mhallREP