When Noni Simmons’ home burned last week, her outlook on life and the future was bleak.
Simmons and her daughter considered canceling their Christmas celebration after losing their gifts and decorations in the fire.
Not even a week later, Simmons and her daughter have felt a wave of community support that has turned their lives around.
“It’s the strangest thing, that something so traumatic has turned into something so wonderful,” said Simmons, a single mother to her daughter, 17-year-old Shay Davis. “It’s hard to feel grief when you are so blessed by so many people.”
On the evening of Dec. 8, Simmons lost her home on Albany Street in Brunswick to the fire — all of her belongings, her daughter’s Glynn Academy mementos, her Christmas gifts and, sadly, her two dogs. Both the first and second floors of the house were heavily damaged.
Now, faculty at Needwood Middle School, where Simmons is a paraprofessional, and Altama Elementary School, where she had worked, are trying to help her.
“They are really rallying for us. They have completely jumped on getting donations for us,” said Simmons. “They have really adopted us as a family and are making sure we’ve got everything we need.”
Beth Cox, instructional specialist at Altama Elementary, and Laurie Novak, speech language pathologist, have stepped in to help Simmons and her daughter get their lives started again.
“She was such an influence on our students and so positive a person, with such a great impact,” Cox said. “We had to do something for her; we had to help.”
For a small donation, teachers at Altama can “dress down,” meaning they can relax in jeans as the school semester wraps up this week, Cox said.
“All of the proceeds go directly to her,” Cox said. “Some people bring in $5, but, of course, we have people who donate much more.” Novak also is collecting furniture and clothing for Simmons and her daughter.
Simmons said that the community reaching out to her and her daughter has made her extremely thankful for where she lives and the people who are a part of the community.
“People who don’t know me, or who don’t even know my daughter, are trying to help us. It’s amazing,” she said. “It’s unreal the support we’re seeing. I’ve got to find a way to pay it forward [by helping someone else].”
The American Red Cross has agreed to pay the deposit and first month’s rent where Simmons will move.
Accounts for donations will be set up at banks and a storage unit is available to store donated items.
While the community has pulled together to support their future, Simmons is still sifting through the remains of her past, by visiting her old home and trying to salvage her memories.
“Everything has been destroyed, and to an adult it’s not much, but to a 17-year-old, it’s everything,” Simmons said. “We’ve got friends who stop by the site and try to help us pick through things, but it’s all burned.”
For someone who just lost everything, Simmons and her daughter, a cheerleader, are remaining upbeat and optimistic.
“We’re very hopeful, and now I’m even at peace with it,” Simmons said. “I’ll be walking around with a smile on my face.”
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