Michelle Petsch, a mother of four children, Domminic, 8, Greenlea, 5, Raven, 3, and Hendrix, 1, were all in their rented house in Fredonia on Saturday afternoon. Petsch was on the phone with her mother, Bobbie White, while her children were in their pajamas and watching Christmas movies. But the day stopped being normal for the whole family soon after.

“I was on the phone with her when the first tree fell,” White said. “I told her to run out of there, which she was already doing. She grabbed her three youngest kids and the 8-year-old ran out on his own. They got out and went over to the house next door, but they weren’t home. It was very windy and the kids were scared. It’s a very sad thing.”

The family watched as two trees landed on their house, while another landed on the new van that had just been purchased over the summer. While an assessor came to the property and deemed it safe enough to walk in, so the family can go in to get some of their family photos and other precious items, they are still in need of a lot of things.

“I think the kids will have beds,” White said. “Right now, their mom doesn’t have a winter coat, and the kids got winter coats, but they’re used, which is something for the time being. When this first happened, they had no shoes, she just grabbed the kids and ran out of the house.”

OBSERVER Photo by Valory Isaacson Pictured is the home on East Main Street damaged in the Dec. 10 wind storm.

Because of this, White has started a GoFundMe for the family to help recoup some of the furniture, clothes and other items they have lost, and the landlord of their rental is working on getting them put in a different house in Dunkirk. On top of that, White said the family has received help from a couple local businesses, one of whom was the family’s neighbor.

“Can Kings said they had two boxes of clothes and somebody else called to help with some Christmas presents,” said White. “The people at Can Kings have been wonderful.”

On top of also having an emergency fund card from the Red Cross, White said the other business that has been great to Petsch is the Best Western on Vineyard Drive.

“People at the Best Western are wonderful,” White said. “They gave her an entire room to store stuff in and two nights to stay for free.”

While the family struggles to find a place to live and to have a car to transport all of them, the kindness the community has displayed to them so far has meant a lot, especially to the kids. The GoFundMe page has raised over $600 thus far, and each dollar meant to help the family has made the kids happy.

“It makes the kids feel so loved as they watch it,” White said. “The 8- and 5-year old see that people care about them. It’s not so much the $50 or $100 donations, it’s that every single dollar counts and makes them feel better.”

White said that everyone involved, from the landlord, the Fredonia Police Department and Fire Department, Best Western, Can Kings, and the community as a whole have been as helpful as they can in the family’s time of need. And while the family is uprooted with very few belongings, White is happy that they escaped with the most important thing.

“The most important thing they got out with was their lives,” White said. “I’m so blessed they’re OK. That’s the main thing. My family is safe and they all got out.”

White said that Petsch and Domminic are currently the most in need of clothes. If you would like to donate to the family, visit their GoFundMe at https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-this-family-who-lost-everything-they-own?utm–source=facebook&utm–medium=social&utm–campaign=p–cf%20share-flow-1&fbclid=IwAR1ID5L01MrqFebK0X45-U0twCAPIjJtPFoWqBthx7AspVQE4YkddwwoSqI