Letter: Parents are grateful for help after fire

Those attending the service said the tragedy affected everyone in the community.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
MERCER, Pa. -- Rudy and Lizzie Wengerd are grateful for the support the community has shown them since the fire a week ago that killed five of their nine children.
Their appreciation was revealed in a letter written by Rudy's brother Neal, read during a memorial service Tuesday for the Wengerd children at Mercer Livestock Auction.
Both Rudy and Neal work there.
"I wish to thank everyone for everything they have done for Rudy and Lizzie," the letter said, adding, "The family can feel that a lot of prayers were offered in their behalf. All we ask is keep praying for the family. They need all the support they can get."
The service
The 20-minute service drew about 100 people to the auction amphitheater. About half the crowd was there for the livestock sale that followed the service, but they sat reverently as prayers were offered for the Wengerd children and the remaining family members.
Neither Rudy nor Lizzie attended the service. Neal spoke briefly, noting that he had dropped off Rudy on their way home from work the night of the fire, arriving home around 8:30 p.m. By 11 p.m., he received word that Rudy's house was ablaze, he said.
Five of the Wengerd children perished, including the second-oldest daughter, Katie, 14, and the youngest son, Jonathan, 2, whose bodies were found together, Neal said. Katie was clutching Jonathan in her left arm, he said.
Levi, 12, Neil, 11, and John, 4, also died in the blaze.
Rudy, Lizzie and Anna, 16, Gideon, 15, Danny, 9, and Emma, 6, escaped the fire, which was started by a malfunction in a basement wood/coal furnace.
Help and donations
The Amish, with a lot of support from their neighbors, are already building a new house next to the one that burned and expect to complete it within a week.
"It's a sad situation," said Rod Loomis, owner of Mercer Livestock Auction.
"We all love Rudy and his family very much," he said, offering his own thanks for the contributions that have been pouring in to help the family. He's also the driving force behind a benefit auction for the family scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at the Hermitage Central Fire Station at 2511 Highland Road, Hermitage.
"Rudy and his family have been in everyone's prayers," Loomis added.
Loomis is also the owner of Loomco International, an importer and marketer of a wide variety of gift and other items.
He said that when he notified his Hong Kong office of what had happened, that office staff took up a collection for the Wengerd family and is sending that money here.
One farmer, Cliff Felton of the Evans City area, even sent a cow to Tuesday's auction, directing that the proceeds go to Rudy and his family, Loomis said.
"We're here to comfort and encourage one another, and of course, the Wengerd family in their loss," said Norm Morrison of Transfer, another auction associate and a friend of Rudy's.
Morrison served as the official spokesman for the service, encouraging those in attendance to take comfort in the words of the Bible and in prayer.
The service drew most of Mercer County's elected officials as well as the Rev. Bruce Richael, pastor of Love Christian Center in Farrell, and Father James Kennelley, pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Mercer.
Neither pastor knows the Wengerd family but both said it is important to show support for them.
The service also drew Toni Reynolds of New Bedford who is a clerk at Cox's Corner, a small store in Pulaski Market that the Wengerds would frequently visit.
"They are very quiet, very kind people," Reynolds said, adding that they always had smiles on their faces.
The children would come in occasionally with their father, she said, adding that she came to show her support for the family.
Neal, in his letter, paid special tribute to the efforts of firefighters who worked to put out the blaze.
"Let's support our volunteer firemen. We don't realize what they are until we need them," he wrote.