Community raising funds for family of year-old twins killed in fire after Christmas

The Kansas City community where 1-year-old twins were killed in a fire two days after Christmas is trying to help the family.

A GoFundMe account has been set up for the surviving family members, including six children and a grandmother, by a friend of the family and of the Kansas City church they attend. Those working to raise funds seek $10,000. So far, $3,459 has been raised.

“They lost everything,” said Terry Glenn, the pastor at World Harvest Ministries, which owned the house in the 3400 block of Woodland Avenue. The burned-out house is just a few doors down from Glenn’s church. The family recently became part of his church congregation.

The blaze that killed the two children, a boy and a girl, last week broke out about 1:45 p.m. Dec. 27 on the second floor. The children, including the twins, were home with a 23-year-old sister when the fire started. She escaped the burning home with four of the children.

Firefighters said the the blaze was mostly contained to one room, where the twins were found, but had started to spread. Kansas City firefighters were able to knock down the blaze within 5 to 10 minutes.

An examination of the scene to determine the cause of the fire has been completed and Deputy Fire Chief Jimmy Walker said the department is waiting on interviews to be conducted before releasing its findings.

Glenn said fire investigators told him the cause did not appear to have been electrical or structural. He said the house, which recently went through remodeling, had new smoke detectors installed.

The family had only been living in the home for fewer than 60 days, Glenn said. Currently, he said, they are staying with neighbors and getting trauma counseling.

“We are focusing on helping this family heal,” Glenn said. “They need new community members to become a part of their family to help them rebuild their lives. To help them start over.”

He said that in addition to the GoFundMe account, the church will take donations of new or slightly used clothing and blankets. “They need everything,” Glenn said.