NEWS

Local connections lead to wildfire aid plea

Chamber CEO asks for help for area he knows well

Chris Balusik
Reporter

CHILLICOTHE — Chillicothe-Ross Chamber CEO Randy Davies is one of several local residents paying close attention to the wildfires that have swept through portions of the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, killing at least 10.

"The Smokies is a favorite destination for so many here in the Scioto Valley," Davies said. "For me, it was someplace we vacationed and fell in love with. My wife, Kristi, and I were even married there 26 years ago, and my father was married there just this past February. The chapel he and Donna were married in did not survive the fire, like so many other structures around the downtown of Gatlinburg (Tennessee).."

Davies' father, in fact, was vacationing in the area recently and reported that the smoke from fires burning a couple miles away blanketed the city during much of his visit. The chamber head also knows several people who live in the Gatlinburg area, and that prompted him to use his Facebook page and connections to try raising money to help businesses, schools, churches and individuals burned out by the fires.

"A friend of mine is the former superintendent of schools in Sevier County (Tennessee) and so we've been in contact with him about what's going on and seeing if there were donations that needed to be sought," he said. "Apparently, they received so much from around the east Tennessee area already that they're asking that nobody send anything other than monetary contributions."

With several funds having been set up to provide financial assistance to victims of the fire, Davies decided to take to Facebook to share the addresses and links to the funds and ask others to do the same. Those addresses include:

  • Gatlinburg Chamber of Commerce Foundation, P.O. Box 1910, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee 37868-1910
  • Wildfire Fund c/o Rotary District 6780 Treasurer Jenifer Campbell, 12515 Choto Mill Lane, Knoxville, Tennessee 37922
  • Dolly Parton's "My People Fund" at www.dollywoodfoundation.org

The American Red Cross also is offering options to help fire victims, with information available at www.redcross.org/local/tennessee/wildfire-information .A $10 donation to the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund can also be made by texting the word REDCROSS to 90999, or donations can be arranged by calling 1-800-RED CROSS.

Businessman Chad Walters, who owns several local Valero stations, also was watching the situation carefully since he owns a cabin in the Gatlinburg area. According to a Facebook post, the cabin was fortunate to survive where many neighboring structures were destroyed by the blaze.

According to the Associated Press Thursday night, rescuers searching through rubble from the fires discovered the remains of three more victims, bringing the confirmed death toll to 10. About 10,000 acres of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and 6,000 acres outside the park have been burned and even though a day of rain Wednesday helped tamp down the blazes, officials expressed concerns that ground that was extremely dry before the rains could be prone to rekindling.