Lance and Carla Burn Fund

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In November 2008, two Caidans from the Shire of Isles were severely injured and lost their home in the Montecito Tea fire. Lord Caius Laevus (Wilhem Caius) and Carla of Isles. Lance and Carla spent over two months in the hospital before being released.

The community of Caid and the greater SCA community made every effort to help out, donating money to the "Burn Fund" set up by the Montecito Fire Department, and holding a raffle for their benefit.

How to Help

The Lance and Carla Burn Fund
Santa Barbara Bank and Trust
1483 East Valley Road
Montecito, CA 93108-1248
  • Gift Card donations:
Vicondesa Jimena Montoya
c/o Liberty Stanavage
795 C Juniper Walk
Goleta, CA 93117.
widowmontoya@hotmail.com

Official notes from the Caidan Disaster Relief Coordinator

SCA branches may not donate funds except to another 501C3. There is nothing preventing individuals in the SCA from donating or hosting fund raising activities for other causes. What must be made clear is that the intended recipient is not the SCA, and these funds may not pass through SCA accounts. It is also a good idea to make sure the donor knows that this donation is not tax deductible. If you are planning a raffle or an auction, check with your local exchequer to see what local laws apply. If you have any questions, please e-mail me at relief@sca-caid.org.

Mistress Aldgytha of Ashwood

What Happened?

Overview

Thursday November 13th, 2008 two members of the Shire of Isles in the Kingdom of Caid were seriously injured. Lord Caius Laevus/Wilhelm Caius and his wife Carla were severely burned escaping the Tea Fire in Montecito, CA.

The Montecito Tea fire is now contained. Unfortunately, two members of our kingdom were among the most severely affected by the fire. Wilhelm Caius/Caius Laevus (and his wife Carla were severely burnt escaping the fire Thursday night, and were airlifted to the burn ward at UC Irvine Medical Center. They have extensive second degree burns, and are currently under sedation until the swelling goes down. Lance is a long-time heavies fighter and the leader of the Isles war unit, the Hand of the Hunt, and Carla fights rapier.

The good news is that they are expected to make a full recovery. The bad news is that they may be in the hospital for up to two months, and have probably lost all of their possessions. They were renting a property in the area closest to the fire, and the house was completely destroyed.

From THL Christian von Eiland

11/22/2008 Lance and Carla are very close friends of mine, and I'm pretty in the know as to what their situation is. [As far as I know] they are still under sedation at the burns ward at UC Irvine med center. The doctors should be bringing them around within the next couple of days. On the night of the fire my gf and I were under mandatory evacuation as the fire came within 2000ft of my house, though we were spared [Lance and Carla] lived close to the heart of the fire. Lance and Carla lived high on the side of the mountain in a small hunting lodge with a million dollar view of Santa Barbara and the ocean. Though the house was in good condition the road to the property had been washed out and had been unusable for several years, requiring you to park about 150-200 yards away from the house. Lance and Carla did not have a landline or watch much television so likely did not recieve the 911 evacuation calls or otherwise hear of the growing fire. Needless to say power to much of the affected area was out, killing the internet and tv. With 70-90 mph Ana winds the fire exploded.

Whats SEEMS to have happened is the fire had come quite close before they had noticed. With the tremendous speeds at which the fire was moving they had very little time to evacuate. On the road to their vehicle, approx. 50yds from the house the fire appears to have overtaken them, likely where they suffered the worst of their burns. Lance was able to get them to the car and drive it down the mountain to the Montecito Fire Station despite the second and third degree burns to his legs, arms, hands and face. At this point they were casevaced to the nearby hospital, stabilized and medivaced to Irvine. Again, this is all speculation and we won't know the truth until they come to. The prognosis is good, with expected full recoveries for both of them. It has been amazing to see the outpouring of support from the community, SCA and friends. People have been almost fighting to donate clothes, money, time and resources. Right now [there] is a tremendous effort to locate their cats, and my garage is being converted into a storage site for the donated goods. As a friend and I were the first to get to the house after the fire I can confirm that the only objects remaining was Lance's armour. Though all the leather strapping was destroyed, the rapid speed of the fire prevented it from getting too hot and I think most of the armour is quite salvageable. Sir Rhys and I will be seeing what we can do about that.

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