A community came together Tuesday to bring donations for a woman and her two children after a fire destroyed their home in Stone Ridge on Sunday.

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Friends and strangers alike could be seen bringing a wagonful of clothes, cards and money.

“We took the money out of our piggybanks and gave it to them,” said Michael Wison, a neighbor.

On Sunday evening, Susan Brann was grilling steak on her back deck when the gas grill she was using exploded, starting a fire in her home on Cordgrass Court.

Brann and her two children—her daughter Alexis, 17, and her son Austin, 12—escaped unhurt but the house was a total loss.

“All my memories, the kids growing up, my husband, everything that we built together, [are] gone,” Brann said.

The accident came at an already difficult time for the family. Two years ago this month, Brann’s husband Robert unexpectedly collapsed and died at home.

“They've gone through so much already,” said Freddy Cortez, a family friend. “To see them lose their house and everything...just makes it that much more difficult for them.”

A Facebook page was started to raise funds with information on how to donate money and items. By midday, more than $5,000 had been raised.

If you would like to donate to the Brann family, gift cards or checks can be dropped off or mailed to the following three locations:

Stone Ridge Association
ATTN: BRANN FAMILY
24609 Nettle Mill Square
Stone Ridge, VA 20105

Monday-Saturday 9-5. Tuesdays until 8PM.

Maureen Bradham
24772 High Plateau Court
Stone Ridge, VA 20105
703-542-7650

Traci Wilson
41845 Cordgrass Circle
Stone Ridge, VA 20105
703-862-0952

Please make all checks payable to Susan Brann.

For more information, please visit the Facebook page here.