‘We have each other’s backs’
Neighbours have come together to support an Annapolis County family whose home was destroyed by fire two days before Christmas.
Deborah Poole created a GoFundMe page in the wee hours of Dec. 24 to raise $10,000 to support Marianne Longmire and her 14-yearold daughter, Savannah. Within the first 12 hours, more than 200 people raised more than $15,000.
“Marianne is an honest, very hard-working single mom,” Poole wrote. “She has endured, faced many challenges life has thrown at her. She’s accomplished working and going to school and raising her child at the same time to improve their lives.”
Poole said she was overwhelmed by the response.
“It tells me Nova Scotians really are the nicest people in the world,” she said. “We have each other’s backs.”
By Jan. 3, 367 people had donated $28,575 through the GoFundMe page.
Longmire thanked the community for its support on her Facebook page.
"Thank you to each and every person who has helped make Christmas morning happen! The love and support is so overwhelming."
Andrew Cranton, chief of the Annapolis Royal Volunteer Fire Department, said the area is comprised of community-focused residents who support one another.
“When tragedy like this happens to somebody in our neck of the woods, whether they know you or not, they always come together,” he said. “The community is really, really strong.”
Poole grew up down the road from Longmire. Poole babysat Longmire and Longmire’s older sister babysat Poole.
Poole said the idea for the GoFundMe came to her while she was with Longmire as they watched firefighters battled the blaze on Dec. 23.
“I just felt an overwhelming need to help.”
Red Cross spokesperson Allie Murchison-Maguire said the mother and daughter spent the night with family nearby. The Red Cross provided clothing, food and hygiene kits with items like shampoo and toothbrushes.
Christmas gifts and clothing were also being donated by community members.
Annapolis Royal firefighters were dispatched to a chimney fire at 3420 Shore Rd. West in Hillsburn, which is about 10 minutes from Annapolis Royal along the Bay of Fundy, at 5:54 p.m. The department’s protocol is to send a senior officer to the scene to assess the situation.
“When my second deputy went over to the shore last night … he found a fully involved structure fire,” Cranton said. “We rolled everything we had to the scene.”
More than 65 firefighters from four counties (Annapolis, Digby, Kings and Queens) battled the blaze in -10 C conditions with a strong wind out of the northwest.
The home, which was not insured, was demolished.
“We had to use an excavator to pull it apart and literally put it out piece by piece, which took some substantial time,” Cranton said.
“Two-and-a-half storeys with balloon construction are very difficult (fires) to fight,” he added. “By the time you get one spot knocked down it’s already moved onto another.”
Firefighters were on scene until about 11:45 p.m.
“We can’t thank our neighbouring departments enough,” Cranton said, noting it extended to the greater community as well. “The community support last night was unbelievable.”
Firefighters were able to save some things from the home, including photos. No one was injured. “Somebody was definitely looking over somebody last night,” Cranton said on Dec. 24.