St. Vincent seeks donations after warehouse fire

Merced’s St. Vincent de Paul Society thrift store and charity is seeking donations for daily operations and to repair its warehouse, which was seriously damaged in a fire last month.

The fire destroyed all the items in the warehouse and warped the ceiling beams, said Tawnya Brown, the organization’s office manager. At least half of the warehouse’s roofing and beams need to be replaced.

“The building is salvageable, but it needs to be gutted,” she said.

Because of the fire, the water and electricity in the kitchen, which is connected to the warehouse, must remain turned off. That limits the organization’s ability to hand out lunches to the needy. It also eliminated the organization’s food pantry.

Currently, the organization will continue to hand out lunches provided by Our Lady of Mercy on Fridays.

The nonprofit is surviving now on sales from its secondhand store. The store regularly receives donations from a handful of people, but volunteers worry that expenses for the warehouse repairs won’t be covered.

Volunteers have turned part of the store into a sorting area for donations and are catching up on deliveries.

“Each year, we think it’s going to be our last,” Brown said. “But each year, our manager always finds a way to keep the place open another year.”

The nonprofit is run by two employees and about 10 volunteers.

The organization also is seeking young volunteers and people interested in serving on the council so it can regain membershipin the international Catholic Society of St. Vincent de Paul, which is based on the Vincentian ideology.

Firefighters first responded to a couch burning in the alley behind the warehouse the night of Aug. 4. The fire spread to the contents of the warehouse.

Four fire engines, a firetruck and two battalion chiefs fought the fire for two hours. The Merced Police Department and Riggs Ambulance assisted.

The fire was deemed suspicious, along with several others the same night that may have been arson. Fire investigators do not have a suspect.

Billy Alcorn, interim chief of the Merced Fire Department, said investigators estimated the damages and losses at about $110,000.

To donate to St. Vincent, visit the store at 345 W. Main St. or donate through the group’s GoFundMe page.

This story was originally published September 8, 2016 at 5:15 PM with the headline "St. Vincent seeks donations after warehouse fire."