Editor:

Our family wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to the good people of Discovery Bay who provided us with so much support after our home was devastated by fire.

This is such a special community. The outpouring of help and kindness was humbling. The organized efforts of the Mothers of Discovery Bay, with assistance from the Lions Club, Discovery Bay Presbyterian Church, St. Anne Church, Rotary, Yacht Club- Splashers, Dr. Todorovich's office and staff, Planet Tan, Elements, Kim Stephens - CABi Clothing, Timber Point PTA, La Playa, Alison Rost - Discovery Toys, and other local organizations and merchants was amazing.

Your efforts provided us with meals, clothing and toys, which were all items we needed to function immediately after the fire. We have received cards of support from so many of you in Discovery Bay, many of whom we have not had the opportunity to meet. We appreciate your kind words and generosity. We have been awed by it.

To our neighbors on north, south and Double Point, we thank you for all your assistance in fighting the fire prior to the arrival of the fire department. Without your efforts, the fire would have spread throughout the neighborhood. To our friends and neighbors on Hampshire and North Point, thank you for taking us in, feeding us, clothing us and providing us with a place of stability for our family as we numbly walked through those first few difficult weeks of closing out our old home and trying to find a new place to live.

We truly could not have made it through those first few weeks without the support and love of this community. You all made our very difficult transition much easier.

We would also like to thank the Contra Costa Fire Department for the extraordinary effort that it made in trying to save our home. A medical emergency call occurred at the same time of the North Point structure fires, which complicated and significantly delayed the arrival of the first fire trucks. Once they did arrive on the scene, two crews were sent into our home - one to fight the fire, the other to secure our personal items.

They literally walked down my staircase and took the portraits of my babies off the wall and placed them under plastic wrap on the opposite side of our home away from the fire. My wedding dress was found during the fighting of the fire, where most of the fire devastation occurred, and it was brought to me curbside.

While we did lose all of the contents in our home (what did not burn was lost to smoke and water damage), it was due to the extraordinary efforts of the fire department that we were left with items that we could identify and record after the fire.

To everyone in Discovery Bay and surrounding communities who played a role in our assistance, we want to say thank you. This experience has shown our family that Discovery Bay is a special place far beyond the uniqueness of a water-focused community where you can live and play. It is an amazing small town filled with caring families who rally together in a time of need. We are so grateful.

The Belcher family

Discovery Bay