To the Editor:

On March 15, my family lost its home to a fire. Since then, many things have transpired and our life has been very different. However, we recently started building a new home where our old one once stood, and I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude to the people and community that have shown their support throughout this entire process.

Although months have passed since the fire, it still feels like yesterday. The days that followed were strange. Not knowing where we were going to sleep. Realizing that we can’t just go home to have a meal, or watch TV.

The simple things that we often take for granted were no longer part of our daily routine. It was hard to imagine how we were going to get back to "normal" and have a home again. Through all of this though, there was so much support from so many people.

My phone didn't stop ringing the first couple of weeks after the fire. Most of the calls were from family, friends, and friends of friends, who just wanted to check in and even offer a place to stay. It was these people and these phone calls that kept us going these first few weeks, and we are so very thankful to them.

We are also very thankful to the Westmere Fire Department, Guilderland Police Department, and Albany County Sheriff's Office who came together to organize a fundraiser for us. It was completely unexpected and incredibly humbling. The turnout was more than we could have imagined and we wanted to extend a huge thank-you to everyone that was there.

From our town supervisor to the family down the street, there were so many people from our community who wanted to show their support. Senator George Amedore and his family even took the time to stop by and see how we were doing, which only heightened the sense of pride that we have for this area.

The generosity from everyone was overwhelming and made us feel so fortunate to be a part of this community. Whether you showed up to shake our hands or just say a kind word, it was all extremely heartwarming during a very difficult time.

We can not begin to express how truly thankful we are for everyone that has helped make this journey a little easier. It's strange, but we've had so much support from so many people, we almost find ourselves feeling lucky. We're finally starting to get excited and look forward to having a new house that we can call home, and we just wanted to take a moment to say thank you.

John Govel and Family

Guilderland