Client starts fundraiser to help cleaners after Clearfield Township fire
CLEARFIELD TWP — Two women are unable to conduct their cleaning business after their vehicle and barn were destroyed in a fire Monday, Nov. 6, in the township, and a client is looking to raise money to get them back on their feet.
The fire on McEvoy Road started from a pile of burning leaves at the home of Laura and Kathy Bowser around 2 p.m. when wind blew the embers to the barn, which caught fire.
“We don’t even know how it happened; it just took off,” Laura Bowser said, standing next to a pile of debris, which covered her backyard. Among the piles of ash were wooden beams, a filing cabinet and their incinerated Jeep SUV.
According to Kris Bowser, assistant fire chief with the Herman Volunteer Fire Company, the barn, which he called a garage, was a total loss, along with some tractors and a car. He said some of the siding on the house was damaged, but it is livable.
“They had the trifecta of fires,” Bowser said.
Laura said she was in the second floor of her home when she noticed something was amiss outside.
“I kept seeing something black out of the corner of my eye, and I thought, ‘That’s not leaf smoke,’” she said. “By the time I told everyone, it was already on the barn.”
The barn was built to fit two 18-wheeler trucks, she said, but was housing two riding mowers, various tools and furniture, Christmas decorations and nine barn cats.
All nine cats survived the fire, she said.
Kathy Bowser said the car was parked next to the barn, and she ran outside to try to save it.
“I got in the car and tried to put it in reverse. It wouldn’t go,” she said.
The car, which was purchased earlier this year, caught fire and exploded, Kathy said. She could hear the blast from the other side of the house.
“We just got it inspected and brand-new tires,” Laura added. “I have to laugh about it; what else can you do?”
The car was their mode of transportation to conduct a cleaning business, Happy Home Cleaners, which they’ve managed for eight years.
“We can’t work; we can’t go anywhere,” Laura said.
A longtime client, Jennifer O’Connor, of Pittsburgh, started a GoFundMe page for the Bowsers, hoping to help them get a rental car while they wait for the insurance money.
The goal is to raise $10,000, according to the site.
O’Connor said she hired the Bowsers to clean her home in 2018 after taking in her sister, who was diagnosed with ALS.
“I was going through all kinds of different people; I didn’t want a company,” O’Connor said. “I met Kathy, and she stood on my front porch, and we just talked and talked.”
“People would clean for her and never come back,” Kathy said. “I thought, ‘How could you not want to help her?’”
The friendship feels more like family to both of them, with the group sharing Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
“They’ve been amazing,” O’Connor said. “We would do anything for each other.”
Once O’Connor learned what happened to the Bowsers, she said she knew she had to help.
“They’re gonna need a car, so I’m raising money for them to rent a car,” she said. “I think what people don’t realize is that the insurance money isn't coming for a long time.”
According to Laura, Kathy cried when she got the text about the fundraiser.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” Laura said. “We love her. I think she’s awesome.”
O’Connor said even if people contribute to the fund a little, it will alleviate a burden.
“Kathy is a fixer. The problem with fixers is they can’t fix everything. I think they’re very deserving,” she said. “They just mean the world to me, and they’ve had enough for a lifetime.”
Kathy said the house was saved due to the hard work of firefighters. The only damage was some melted siding.
“If (the fire departments) wouldn’t have got there so quick, the house probably would have caught fire,” she said. “Their response saved our house. As overwhelming as all this is, I can’t imagine if we lost everything.”
To donate to the Bowsers’ GoFundMe, visit “The Bowser Family” page via gofund.me/7e3f8cbc.
