THE GIFT OF SHELTER
Displaced Berry Creek firefighters receive RVs to begin recovery
OROVILLE » Katherine Molohon walked up to a parked RV in pure disbelief.
Her ice-blue eyes lit up, completely stunned, as she gazed at her new haven.
She hadn’t had much reason to smile since the North Complex West Zone fires wreaked havoc on Berry Creek, Feather Falls and Brush Creek on Sept. 8. But, with a smile beaming across her face, Molohon, a volunteer firefighter with the Berry Creek fire department, was gifted an RV Saturday afternoon at Riverbend Park in Oroville.
“I’m just in shock from the whole thing. A good shock, not a bad shock from (the fire),” Molohon said. “It’s so awesome.”
Molohon had been living in a converted shed behind her mother’s trailer in Oroville since losing her home in Mountain House to the North Complex West Zone fires.
“(My mom’s) got a single wide so it’s kind of cramped,” Molohon said.
The generous gift came courtesy of James “Woody” Faircloth of EmergencyRV (formerly RV4CampFireFamily), a nonprofit organization. Faircloth is originally from Colorado.
“The firefighters were at the top of our list,” Faircloth said. “We’re fortunate to help.”
It was the 85th RV Faircloth has gifted to someone who has lost their home and the first person to receive an RV outside of the Camp Fire.
“It’s tragic how many have the same story,” Faircloth said. “It’s why we do it. (An RV) is just such a basic shelter. She’s living in a shed behind her mom’s house. That shouldn’t happen.”
Molohon has dedicated the last seven years serving as a volunteer firefighter in Berry Creek.
“I like helping my community,” Molohon said.
Her family features a long lineage of firefighters. She’s carrying on that tradition.
Her father, aunt and uncle were all volunteer firefighters while her brother was part of the Feather River Hotshots.
But when the North Complex West Zone fires relentlessly tore through her community, Molohon’s first instinct was to help.
She hopped into a fire engine driving all throughout Berry Creek. She honked the horn, sirens blared and she yelled with fervor over the microphone for everyone to get out.
“We had to get people out. We had to keep honking. Hitting the sirens and yelling. (The fire) was coming so fast,” Molohon said. “I never had to do anything like that before.”
While she was helping as many residents escape to safety, her own home was left to scorch.
“I saw it the next morning,” Molohon said. “It’s a pile of tin and dust.”
Her tiny garden filled with flowers and succulents is gone. She was able to dig up a few flower bulbs she had recently planted. Her fellow firefighters had soaked the bulbs before departing the area, hoping they could still be saved.
“I was able to dig them up since they were still wet,” Molohon said. “And they’re coming back.”
Molohon has been tending to her flowers while staying on her mother’s property. It’s given her a little bit of joy.
Molohon’s new RV originally belonged to Barbara Schultheis and Ana Esquivel, a couple living in Hesperia, a town in southern California.
Schultheis spent 19 years part of the San Francisco Fire Department, going through the ranks from a firefighter to a fire marshal. She’s retired now.
“We were thinking about selling our trailer. Then when we saw all these fires happening everywhere we were watching all these people living in tent cities, we were feeling horrible,” Schultheis said. “We were looking out the window at this trailer thinking ‘somebody could live in this thing.’”
Schultheis then started researching ways to donate an RV and came across Faircloth and EmergencyRV.
“This is serendipity. It’s amazing how it unfolded,” Faircloth said.
Schultheis and Esquivel departed Hesperia with the RV at 4 a.m. Saturday. They met up with Faircloth who arranged to gift the RV to Molohon at Riverbend Park.
Though Schultheis was a firefighter in the city, she can still relate to what Molohon has had to endure as a rural firefighter.
“My heart is with her,” Schultheis said. “You know what it’s like to be in a situation where everybody is running away but you’ve got to go in.”
Schultheis witnessed Molohon’s reaction when receiving the RV and couldn’t help but hope that the new home will give Molohon a place to rest and begin recovery from the fire.
“It makes me feel good. It makes me happy,” Schultheis said. “I’m sure it’s still bittersweet. You’ve lost everything you own. I hope we can soften the blow a little bit.”
Faircloth originally began giving out donated and gently used RVs to Camp Fire victims but has expanded his organization to help those who’ve been impacted nationwide.
“We want to do this wherever there’s emergency transitional housing needs in the United States. It happens all the time,” Faircloth said. “We’re just blessed with this platform. Let’s keep it going.”
On Sunday, a second RV was gifted to a North Complex fire victim, this time to Reed Rankin, the volunteer fire chief of Berry Creek.
Rankin lived about four houses away from Molohon. Like Molohon, he lost his home while trying to evacuate everyone out of Berry Creek.
Since then, Rankin said he’s has been living in different fire stations and crashing with various friends to “spend the night and take a shower.”
The stress of the situation has eaten away at Rankin.
“The stress levels have really made me feel older than I am,” Rankin said.
However, the RV gives him a temporary space to feel at ease.
“It’s a huge help — humongous. I don’t have words for this. I’m just shocked,” Rankin said. “I’m just speechless. I’m very thankful.”
Molohon said she’ll be relocating her new RV to the Harts Mills fire station. Rankin will also be staying in Berry Creek.
“When captain (Rankin) gets his, we’re moving it up to Berry Creek at the old Harts Mills fire station. It’s the only station that didn’t burn,” Molohon said.
Molohon has had to take a break from firefighting. After losing her home and seeing her community scattered throughout Butte County, she felt it was best to get some rest.
“I had to take a break,” Molohon said. “It was way too stressful seeing all of (the destruction) right there.”
However, she plans on rebuilding her home when possible. She misses the logging trucks, the loud rumble of the jake brakes, and the cool mountain air.
“We’re going to go back to Berry Creek,” Molohon said. “When we can, we want to go home.”
Anyone interested in donating or receiving an RV can visit https://emergencyrv.org/.
“We want to do this wherever there’s emergency transitional housing needs in the United States. It happens all the time. We’re just blessed with this platform. Let’s keep it going.”
— James “Woody” Faircloth