Christian Burns and his wife, Jenni, are continuing to talk with me. They have an incredible story. Last July their house burned. Their kids were inside, Jenni heard the fire “popping sounds” and got the kids out OK. But, then Christian blogged it and people sent stuff and funds (they were uninsured) in.
You can read the story here on their blog. It’s a great example of a blogger’s readers rallying around to help out. They posted pictures of the fire here on Flickr.
Scobleizer 
“… they were uninsured”
Shame on them.
I actually get pissed when I hear public outcries to help people who were uninsured. I pay my way, and I’m a self employed single parent of two. I won’t be asking for help if I get hit by a fire because I was short sighted enough to be uninsured.
Yes, we have a social responsibility to help others. But we also have a PERSONAL responsibility to help ourselves first.
Rob
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“… they were uninsured”
Shame on them.
I actually get pissed when I hear public outcries to help people who were uninsured. I pay my way, and I’m a self employed single parent of two. I won’t be asking for help if I get hit by a fire because I was short sighted enough to be uninsured.
Yes, we have a social responsibility to help others. But we also have a PERSONAL responsibility to help ourselves first.
Rob
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When I saw “blog fire”, I couldn’t help but think of current problems with my WordPress installation.
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When I saw “blog fire”, I couldn’t help but think of current problems with my WordPress installation.
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hey scoble..
http://www.microsoft.com/max/
do u mean this product in u r blog posted 2 days b4 writing about the “wow”??
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hey scoble..
http://www.microsoft.com/max/
do u mean this product in u r blog posted 2 days b4 writing about the “wow”??
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Sorry to upset you Rob. We also pay our way but we had to learn this one the hard way. The cool part was the connection that we made with so many strangers because they chose to give something. That is very difficult to put into words. Giving can bless the giver more than the receiver at times.
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Sorry to upset you Rob. We also pay our way but we had to learn this one the hard way. The cool part was the connection that we made with so many strangers because they chose to give something. That is very difficult to put into words. Giving can bless the giver more than the receiver at times.
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Christian – am blessed. Been a giver. Thanks. But never gave before I paid my insurance. I haven’t read your story. I’m just accustomed to hearing these stories, and I think people should have insurance.
Insurance costs me less per year than my Internet access.
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Christian – am blessed. Been a giver. Thanks. But never gave before I paid my insurance. I haven’t read your story. I’m just accustomed to hearing these stories, and I think people should have insurance.
Insurance costs me less per year than my Internet access.
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watever: no, but that’s yet another example, albeit one that’s public.
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watever: no, but that’s yet another example, albeit one that’s public.
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Three years ago we had a fire that started in our garage from a defective, unsealed, circuit board on an electric Black & Decker mower that got water from the grass on the circuit board, smoldered, and bust into flame.
Because it started in the garage, the house went up fast and furious. I’ll never forget the sound of my wife’s scream when the fireball knocked her back.
We just made it out.
We discovered after the fire that this model had caused enough fires that there had been a product recall issues by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
My wife was burned and medivacted to Johns Hopkins Burn Center. My kids were traumatized and the youngest stuck pretty close-by for a year afterwards.
I had to listen to the opinionated, uninformed tell me they never had a fire because they did not store mulch in the garage…mainly because one bad egg volunteer firefighter gave that as the cause of the fire to the press.
We had USAA insurance and they did a good job…but there are multiple expanses not covered due to “depreciation” which insurance companies define broadly.
I’ve been in this situation, and I think it is admirable that bloggers helped this family get back on their feet. My hat is off to them all.
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Three years ago we had a fire that started in our garage from a defective, unsealed, circuit board on an electric Black & Decker mower that got water from the grass on the circuit board, smoldered, and bust into flame.
Because it started in the garage, the house went up fast and furious. I’ll never forget the sound of my wife’s scream when the fireball knocked her back.
We just made it out.
We discovered after the fire that this model had caused enough fires that there had been a product recall issues by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
My wife was burned and medivacted to Johns Hopkins Burn Center. My kids were traumatized and the youngest stuck pretty close-by for a year afterwards.
I had to listen to the opinionated, uninformed tell me they never had a fire because they did not store mulch in the garage…mainly because one bad egg volunteer firefighter gave that as the cause of the fire to the press.
We had USAA insurance and they did a good job…but there are multiple expanses not covered due to “depreciation” which insurance companies define broadly.
I’ve been in this situation, and I think it is admirable that bloggers helped this family get back on their feet. My hat is off to them all.
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What Poetslife has described about the defective product causing so much loss is more common then people think. Yes, we should have insurance and also at the same time, have sense of community when someone falls on hard luck.
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What Poetslife has described about the defective product causing so much loss is more common then people think. Yes, we should have insurance and also at the same time, have sense of community when someone falls on hard luck.
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Wow!! This gives me hope. My brother and his wife just lost everything. They are both disabled, him with Parkinson’s, her from a stroke suffered last April. I must say, the insurance barely covered what was still owed to the person they were buying from (it was a mobile home type of house. The Red Cross put them up for 2 days and now they are trying to get on their feet. They do not even drive (health reasons as above prevent it). There is so much the insurance does not cover and they said it can be months before they get anything for the contents of the home. What are they to do?? If anyone knows who helps out in these situations I would love to hear about it!
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Wow!! This gives me hope. My brother and his wife just lost everything. They are both disabled, him with Parkinson’s, her from a stroke suffered last April. I must say, the insurance barely covered what was still owed to the person they were buying from (it was a mobile home type of house. The Red Cross put them up for 2 days and now they are trying to get on their feet. They do not even drive (health reasons as above prevent it). There is so much the insurance does not cover and they said it can be months before they get anything for the contents of the home. What are they to do?? If anyone knows who helps out in these situations I would love to hear about it!
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In 2003 the house I grew up in, and the house my mom lived in, burnt totally to the ground in a wildfire. She was insured, but even the insured need help. We turned to a non-profit organization called Community Assisting Recovery and they really helped us understand what our rights were… since sometimes the insurance companies forget to tell you things that might be in your best interest, but not theirs. In the end, the really saved our behinds and I highly recommend getting in touch with the organization I since volunteered for… and now work for… in San Diego helping “new” wildfire survivors from the 2007 California Wildfires.
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In 2003 the house I grew up in, and the house my mom lived in, burnt totally to the ground in a wildfire. She was insured, but even the insured need help. We turned to a non-profit organization called Community Assisting Recovery and they really helped us understand what our rights were… since sometimes the insurance companies forget to tell you things that might be in your best interest, but not theirs. In the end, the really saved our behinds and I highly recommend getting in touch with the organization I since volunteered for… and now work for… in San Diego helping “new” wildfire survivors from the 2007 California Wildfires.
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