Posted by Lisa, a resident of another community, on Jul 31, 2012 at 9:24 pm

I was there to witness the fire. What a brave family to go through that horrifying trauma. I am so incredibly relieved and happy to know that the boy had escaped. Hallelujah! My love and support goes out to the family.

Correction---the house address was 132, not 127.

Lisa Lynn

Posted by Hmmm, a resident of another community, on Aug 1, 2012 at 9:53 am

I'm glad that everyone escaped relatively unscathed - including the dog. What a disturbing story - thinking your child is in the burning building. And the neighbor's caregiver fleeing, leaving the disabled woman alone? Clearly it all could've ended much more tragically.

Posted by Close to Home, a resident of the Menlo Park: other neighborhood, on Aug 1, 2012 at 12:10 pm

If a community organization gets involved in raising funds to help this family, I hope The Almanac will follow up with details for anyone who wants to contribute. Thank heaven they're all alive but I'm sure they are devastated.

Posted by Hmmm, a resident of another community, on Aug 1, 2012 at 2:13 pm

What's needed for the family - do you know? I know that finding housing after a fire can be a nightmare.

Isn't there homeowners' insurance? I know that doesn't always kick in as fast as needed.

Posted by Ishea Ventura , a resident of another community, on Aug 14, 2012 at 12:43 pm

This Is the story of how your life can change instantly. That was our home. We loved it. I worked so hard to get what we had.

We had been homeless for 2 years, living in homeless shelters and now we are back in this position. I am a single mother trying to make the best of this situation, but it Is truly hard.

I am blessed that I did not lose my son, that was the worst feeling I had ever felt. I would like to thank the nice people who have donated to my family. We are truly in need of everything, still. If you would like to make a donation to my family, there Is a donation account at Stanford credit union. We would really appreciate it.

Thank you for your support. Ishea Ventura

Posted by Poster, a resident of another community, on Aug 14, 2012 at 2:15 pm

The message below was posted on Palo Alto Online:

Posted by Felicia Ventura, a resident of the Downtown North neighborhood, on Aug 8, 2012 at 3:29 pm

Hi All,

As some of you may know, Tuesday, July 31, 2012 my sister Ishea Ventura and her children (Dominique 15, Precious 11, Jordan 9, Sanaa 1 and Mekayla 3 months) lost their home in a house fire. Not only did they lose their home but they also lost their car, so when I say they lost everything I mean they lost everything. I am reaching out to the community and my friends to see if I can get help for them in this time of need. They are accepting and very appreciative of any kind of donation, clothing, household items and of course money. She is a single parent on a fixed income. Obviously this has been a very tragic event for them, and they have an extremely challenging road ahead of them.

An account has been set up at:

Stanford Federal Credit Union

Relief Fund for Ventura Family Fire

14220434 (member number-please include this number when making donations)

Mail donations to:

P.O. Box 10690

Palo Alto, CA 94303-0843

Walk in locations:

525 University Ave. Suite 21 694 Pampas Lane

Palo Alto, CA 94301 Stanford, CA 94305

If you have any questions or need to contact me my phone number is 408.469.7516 or you can email me at felicia.ventura@sbcglobal.net

Thank you and God Bless

Felicia Ventura

Posted by Hmmm, a resident of another community, on Aug 14, 2012 at 8:17 pm

Felicia- if you join the local FreeCycle, you can ask for items as well as look on the list for items she can use.

Are any of the local churches or nonprofits helping as well?