Neyma Garcia, a lifelong resident of the Panhandle of Texas, got an alert to evacuate her home on February 27. Garcia left her job teaching, collected her family, grabbed what they could and drove two hours to Amarillo to escape the Smokehouse Creek Fire.

The next day, Wednesday, Garcia received a call from the fire department letting her know her house had been saved but suffered some damage. With the evacuation order lifted, Garcia had returned to her hometown of Canadian the same day.

Learning of the disaster assistance center, the music teacher decided to help her students and families who lost their homes by obtaining resources.

“It was shocking to come back to town and see the destruction,” she said. “But it’s great knowing that so many people out here are coming to help. I’m thankful to see the Red Cross is assisting.”