Hundreds of firefighters, family, and community supporters gathered in Morris Township on Sunday to support a Clearfield County family.
On Christmas Eve, Butch Dunlap, a founding member of the Winburne Volunteer Fire Company and father of the current fire chief, died in a fire at his home. His grandson Noah said that during this difficult time, the community has been a major help. Sunday afternoon, the Morris Township Fire Company held a basket raffle and spaghetti dinner to raise money to support the family.
“The amount of support that they’ve shown to us for the last couple of weeks is incredible. Just dealing with them for the last few years with my service has been a journey with them because the amount of support that they have for our community and their surrounding ones is incredible for what they do,” said Dunlap.
Aside from donations received from dinner and basket sales, the organization Friends of the Flag, which raises money for veterans and first responders in need, made a special donation to the family.
Friends of the Flag Chairman Kenneth Larsen explained, “You can’t put a price on life. But this donation is something that can go towards his funeral costs, you know, living costs, cleanup costs, whatever that the family needs from the donation.”
Noah Dunlap said that his family is overwhelmed and grateful for the support.
“Today is unexplainable for the amount of support that is coming through here, with just seeing everything from the incident to now for the amount of support that is people that have shown to us,” he said.
If you’re interested in making a donation, you can contact the Winburne Volunteer Fire Company on Facebook.
