Year of Recovery: Gatlinburg immigrant family gets $10K donation after fire

It started as a normal day of work, running errands and picking up his fifth-grade son after school for Allan Rivera, but by around 5 p.m., he was nearly in tears in the middle of his Pigeon Forge living room.

"No way. No way," said Rivera, moments after being handed a check for $10,000.

"Oh my God. Thank you," said his girlfriend, Lelin Romero, wiping away tears as their oldest son, Simon, crowded around them. "Oooo," he said, his eyes growing large.

It's been four months since the couple and their three children were left homeless by the Sevier County wildfires that swept through the town of Gatlinburg and destroyed the cabin they were renting along with the homes of thousands of others. They spent weeks bouncing between shelters and motels and faced the challenge of trying to find affordable housing and keep their children clothed and fed.

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Rivera has talked about his growing faith and love of his family in the aftermath of the fires, but also his concerns about costs adding up between rent, utilities and other bills.

A News Sentinel reader and his wife who were touched by the family's story decided to donate $10,000 to them. "We were touched by this particular story, which is not unlike many others that took place," said the reader, who wants to remain anonymous. "We've been fortunate in our lives to have the help of mentors and employers who have been there for us in tough times and we just felt like it was the right thing to do after reading the story about the Riveras."

The family, meanwhile, said they are grateful for the money, which will likely help offset an increase they've seen in rent that so far they've met in part with assistance from the Dollywood Foundation, which pledged $1,000 per month for six months to each family affected by the fires. That money will run out after May.

"We feel blessed to have good people who are helping us," said Rivera, 29. "We didn't expect this. They are kind of angels in our life."

He said he plans to save the money, at least for now, for bills he is anticipating or for the deposit on a new apartment or house when the family moves out of their current rental. They'd like to move back into Gatlinburg so they can walk to their jobs and their oldest son, Simon, can walk to school or have a shorter commute.

"We have to save it for a while," Rivera said. "With the amount we get working right now we pay the bills. We’ll try to use some of the money probably for a deposit for the next house, for going back to Gatlinburg."

Ideally, Rivera said he and Romero would each work two jobs, but with three children it's too hard. Recently, Romero, who had been staying home to take care of the kids, started a job at Pizza Hut, where she says she does a little bit of everything - making pizzas, doing dishes and cleaning. She makes $8.25 an hour - an amount Rivera says is barely worth it after they pay for a babysitter while she's away.

"I have no words," Rivera said after getting the check. "Thank you. We're going to save it for a while. We don't really know what to do right now. It's a good thing for the family. Things are getting better."