Resident aims to help victims of wildfire

Escaping with only the clothes on their backs, hundreds of residents of Paradise, California, are now living in tents in parking lots after the deadliest wildfire in state history.

Local resident and Studio Props business owner Dick Kyker has set up a donation drive to help families.

“I believe we were put on this earth to help other people,” Kyker said.

Beginning Monday, Studio Props will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for donations. They are located at 21170 Centre Pointe Parkway, Unit 200, and will continue to collect until Dec. 12.

They are looking for donations of warm clothes, jackets, parkas, hats, gloves, blankets, sleeping bags, working computers, cellphones and gift cards, Kyker said.

Kyker spoke to what's left of the Paradise Chamber of Commerce, he said.

He plans to personally deliver the donations himself and hopefully to direct families he has found through paradisefireadoptafamily.com/.

Kyker personally knows a family who lost everything. “They didn’t take anything,” he said. “They saw cars burning behind them while trying to escape.”

His friends will be one of the many families receiving the donations.

The company, which rents out props to different industries, also did a donation drive in 2017.

They put together 17 crates of donations for the victims of Hurricane Harvey in Texas, and are hoping to receive just as much or more donations for this drive, Kyker said.

“They are Californians we need to help. These people are living in tents,” he said.

If you would like to help get donations together by volunteering or have questions about donation, call Dick Kyker at 818-679-4000.

mlutes@signalscv.com