On Dec. 12, a fire destroyed the mobile home, her belongings and a majority of the tools she and her husband use to make a living.
SOMERSET, Texas — For years, Juanita Vallejo has been chopping wood for barbecue joints across the area. She sells it for five dollars a crate.
“I’m not about just trying to show you what I’m about, you know, like, what kind of what are you looking for?” she said. “What do you what kind of what do you need the wood for? If you just want it to burn, to barbecue, for heat, flavor. I know about that.”
She moved her mobile home of 20 plus years to a new property in Somerset.
“We’re just hard working people like everybody out there that are just working hard and want the best for themselves as well,” Vallejo stated.
On Dec. 12, a fire destroyed the mobile home, her belongings and the majority of the tools she and her husband use to make a living. According to the Atascosa County Fire Marshal’s Office, an initial report stated that the fire started from her neighbor’s home.
“When I came out here, my husband came out with the fire extinguisher,” Vallejo described. “But of course, a fire thing was just not meant for nothing like this. It’s only for a house, and, so the fire just took off so fast. We were like, trying to look for a hammer. We’re like, we don’t even have a hammer.”
It’s unbelievably heartbreaking and emotional for the couple, who are now trying to rebuild.
“You know, it saddens me that we’re starting new, and it is hard,” she said. “Nobody will know until you’re there, until you’re put there. I feel like if I’m take if I take two steps forward, it’s pushing me back.”
If you’d like to help the family, there is a GoFundMe. The link can be found HERE.