Anie's Pizza and Bakery has been serving up the goods in Cache Creek for more than a decade.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED / Anie's Pizza and Bakery
April 17, 2020 - 12:06 PM
After they lost their home of 15 years and their dog during a house fire this week, Anie and Ian Campbell are getting support from friends and strangers across the province.
For 12 years the couple had run Anie’s Pizza and Bakery in Cache Creek, and their customer base proves to be loyal to more than just the pizza. A GoFundMe was started yesterday, April 16, by a friend and has already raised $5,300, more than half of the goal.
The couple’s home caught fire in the early morning hours of April 15. Anie says investigators are still working to determine what happened though the fire, which damaged another home, was deemed suspicious.
Anie says she and Ian were checked by paramedics after they tried to search the burning house for their dog. They were unsuccessful and ran out with just the clothes on their backs.
“We lost both of our cell phones, we lost our glasses and even my dentures," Anie says. "I’ve been phoning some dentists and they can’t do it because of COVID-19. I have to wait and I don’t know how many months, maybe a year without teeth.”
Her husband is a carpenter and hopes to recover some of his tools from their garage before the house is demolished. Anie says it is not yet clear as to the extent of the damage or the value of the items lost.
Anie says the couple is now living in their RV and aren’t sure what next steps will be. For now, she is working alone at the restaurant and hopes to fill her day by feeding customers.
“Maybe because of what happened people will help me out, they might order some food," Anie says. "Right now I’m working by myself because of the COVID-19, I cannot afford to pay my employees so I’ve been working by myself.”
Even if she doesn’t serve up much food for her local community during the pandemic, she couldn’t hold back emotions while talking about the impact the GoFundMe supporters have had on her.
“They are so supportive, from Cache Creek to even Kamloops and I’ve heard even from Vancouver and they don’t even know us and they’re helping out... I’m speechless. We don't expect these things to happen. Me and my husband would like to thank everyone for the help and the support.”
The GoFundMe page can be found here.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Jenna Wheeler or call (250) 819-6089 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.
We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.
News from © iNFOnews, 2020