Volunteers for Victoria County Disaster Trust Fund help people impacted by fire

Grant Peters just recently retired from his role in a service group that has been playing an under-the-radar role since 1983.

The Victoria County Disaster Trust Fund is a group of volunteers who respond when a home or residence catches fire. They will drive out to the fire and offer support to the families whose lives have just been turned upside down.

Sharon McCrae is still with the group and in charge of the 10-member team at Victoria County Disaster Trust Fund. In their prime, the group had upwards of 50 members who could respond. Without an infusion of new volunteers, the group may have to disband.

McCrae was first a councillor for the township of Ops, servings as deputy reeve, the reeve, and the elected warden at various times in her career. The fund started at the county level, and she and the other councillors were recruited as the first round of volunteers. 

The fund began in the early 1980s after a fire in Bobcaygeon left “a bunch of people with no place to sleep that night,” said McCrae. “We didn’t have A Place Called Home in those days, so several county councillors and private citizens got together in somebody’s basement and decided we should get some fundraising done and organize ourselves to provide a place to sleep for the first 24 hours, fresh clothing if they needed it, and meals.”

When a fire happens, the needs include a place to stay that night until they get a hold of their insurance companies and figure out how they can move on with their lives after a devastating fire.

“Anyone who goes through a disaster like that,” said Peters, “their brains just don’t accept what’s going on from shock.”

All of this costs money and The Victoria County Disaster Trust Fund is funded through fundraisers and the contribution of service clubs and municipalities. The treasurer of Kawartha Lakes does all of the money management, something that was mandated when it first started. McCrae said the group on average goes to 20 to 30 fires a year, and they provide vouchers from local businesses that participate.

“We’ve had marvellous cooperation with local businesses here, from hotels to grocery stores and department stores,” said Peters. Examples provided were White’s and Giant Tiger.

A significant memory for Peters was in 2018. On July 27 that year, a raging fire in the early hours of the morning on a third floor apartment on 41 Angeline St. S had all its residents evacuated. Over 30 people were now out on the streets, some “only in their nightgowns and pajamas” until a full inspection of the building and its safety had completed. He, another coordinator and his wife all helped to gather everyone at the Church of Latter Day Saints and keep a roof over their heads.

McCrae hopes the fund has made a difference. “We’ve had several people who have written letters of thanks and have given us that confidence we’ve made their lives better. We’re not psychiatrists or social helpers. We’re just doing what we can do.”

The fewer members they have, the harder it is for them to keep going.

To volunteer or to find out more information, can call McCrae at 705-878-0114, or Kawartha Lakes Treasurer Carolyn Daynes at the city at 705-324-9411.