GREENFIELD, Wis. — A woman who called Wisconsin home for 20 years must now navigate the devastation due to the wildfires in Hawaii.
Jeannette Lucero shared pictures showing what is left after the fires torched Maui Mike's Beach House in Lahaina, the surf shop she runs with her boyfriend, a man known as "Maui Mike."
"It's gone. It's heartbreaking," Lucero said. "Early morning hours we actually got a few tears come down because the impact of the devastation is now really really beginning to hit us."
Lucero was in Wisconsin for a wedding and to help her daughter move when the news broke.
"I don't look forward to going home on Tuesday if we can fly in because they've suspended flights in," Lucero explained.
Lucero was born and raised in Maui. However, her ties to the City of Greenfield run deep. Lucero lived in the area for two decades before she moved back to Maui.
Lucero's children were born and raised in Wisconsin. Lucero fundraised for the little league and planned the city's Fourth of July events. She was recognized for her contributions to the community in 2017.
"She's always been someone who jumped on a cause and helped got it going," friend Chris Gauthier said.
Gauthier met Lucero while they both served on the board for little league and through his work as a Milwaukee firefighter. Gauthier talked at length about the ways Lucero would help others.
When Gauthier heard about Lucero's business burning down he organized a GoFundMe account to help her, their employees, and their families as they rebuild.
"I just know how good the people in Wisconsin are and how they rally around somebody who's one of their own. This is a person that would be so grateful and appreciative of any help that comes her way," Gauthier said.
As Lucero tries to figure out the next steps, she is overwhelmed by the show of support from her friends in Wisconsin.
"I cannot think everyone enough for everything that they've done. You may not think that you've done much, but it's meant the world to Maui, myself, my family, and the people of Maui," Lucero said.
Greenfield 4th of July and Partners of Greenfield Parks and Recreation also shared the GoFundMe link.
According to Gauthier in the GoFundMe link, "I have been friends with Janette for many years. Anyone who knows her knows how much she has devoted her life to helping other people. Jeanette and I were on the Greenfield Little League board together and spent many hours raising money to make the kids baseball experience as good as it could be! She will do anything for anyone and if you’ve been out to visit her in Hawaii you know this. Let’s all get together and show her our love by supporting her and her employees in this time of need! The money will be used to help the workers and families affected and for rebuilding efforts!"
They have a $10,000 goal. Click here to donate.
At least 36 killed on Maui as fires burn
According to The Associated Press, the search of the wildfire wreckage on the Hawaiian island of Maui on Thursday revealed a wasteland of burned out homes and obliterated communities as firefighters battled the stubborn blaze that has already claimed 36 lives, making it the deadliest in the U.S. in recent years.
Fueled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, the fire started Tuesday and took the island by surprise, racing through parched growth and neighborhoods in the historic town of Lahaina, a tourist destination that dates to the 1700s and is the biggest community on the island's west side.
Maui County said late Wednesday that at least 36 people have died. But that figure could rise as rescuers reach parts of the island that had been unreachable due to ongoing fires or obstructions including blocked roads. Officials said earlier that 271 structures had been damaged or destroyed and dozens of people had been injured. It is the deadliest fire since the 2018 Camp Fire in California, which killed at least 85 people and virtually razed the town of Paradise.
“These were large and fast-moving fires, and it’s only recently that we’ve started to get our arms around them and contain them. So, we’re hoping for the best, but we’re prepared for the worst.” Adam Weintraub, a spokesman for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, said Thursday on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
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