DENVER — Staff at a Denver school are coming together to help a cafeteria employee after her home caught fire twice in one week.
Rose Gianni, who was impacted, said both of the fires were electrical in nature and took place within two days of each other at her mobile home located north of Denver.
Gianni said the first fire broke out Tuesday while she was at work at Denver Green School (DGS). She said it destroyed a wall. The second fire broke out on Thursday while she was at her damaged home.
"This is where I live, I'm in shock," Gianni said. "It's just so hard, but I'm just hanging in there."
Gianni lives at the home with her two cats, who thankfully were not injured.
When staff at DGS found out what had happened, they immediately stepped in to help.
Denver7 spoke with Jessica Krichbaum, one of the school principals, and Aleaha Harkins, a music teacher at the school.
"I came directly to her kitchen the very next morning, not expecting to see her there — and there she was sitting, crying at school, and I said, 'How can you be here with a giant travesty at your house?' And she said, 'Well, these kids need me. I need to make food and feed these children,'" said Harkins. "I think that's why it really inspired me to do something for her because even experiencing something like a loss in her home, she was willing to put that aside and show up for our kids."
Staff at DGS have launched a GoFundMe fundraiser to help Gianni in her time of need.
"I was in shock, what they're doing for me. I appreciate everything they're doing for me," said Gianni, while fighting back tears.
"She shows up every day. She's helpful to not only the teachers and the school leaders, but the kids and families as well and just helping them navigate different stuff. So we love her. And that's why I wanted to help her," Krichbaum said.
Fundraising efforts are still underway but on Saturday, Krichbaum and Harkins surprised her with $1,000 from their GoFundMe, to start helping her get back on her feet.
The electricians who came out to her home after the fire have notified her she must rewire the electricity in her entire home if she wishes to stay.
