Petaluma Post Office Employees Chip in to Help Fire Victim

On July 4th, Paul Krabbe was sitting on his couch listening to sound of fireworks exploding around him.

“My roommate and I had just finished dinner and were debating whether to go out,” Krabbe, 50, recalls.

But soon a neighbor was frantically knocking on the apartment door, telling him that the building was on fire. Krabbe remembers looking out and seeing flames as high as 8 feet near the window.

The two men grabbed their dog, their wallets and laptops and ran for the door.

“My roommate didn’t even have shoes,” says Krabbe, who works as a custodian at the downtown and at the South McDowell Boulevard location.

“We lost our checking books, credit cards, our medicine…Everything we’ve owned for 50 years is gone.”

Instead of going out, the roommates spent their Fourth of July at a shelter.

The fire, caused by illegal fireworks according to fire officials, destroyed 12 units at a Rohnert Park apartment complex and left 30 people without homes.

Now, Krabbe’s colleagues at the post office have started a fund to help their co-worker back on his feet. They’ve already raised $800 and found beds and living room furniture for his new apartment in Cotati.

But they are still seeking donations of men’s clothing, shoes and household appliances such as a coffee maker, toaster oven along with blankets, sheets and towels. The men’s shoe sizes are 11.5 and 10W, and gift cards to Target or Kmart are encouraged.

“We’ve working together for the past four years, so it’s pretty typical for us to pitch in when someone needs help,” said Trisha Almond, a trainer at the Petaluma post office who’s coordinating the effort.

If you would like to donate money or items, contact Trisha Almond at trish@simplyalmond.com