Man whose house burned down in Thomas Fire and Mountain Fire moves forward through community’s generosity
VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. – At 21, Luis “Tigre” Villanueva left Mexico in hopes of building a better life, and he did.
He’s a husband, father of two, grandfather of one, and a provider.
Aside from working full time, “El Tigre” also spreads love to local businesses through a larger than life persona he’s created on social media.
But Tigre can’t help but feel he’s failed his family, convinced he’s put them in the line of fire.
“I don’t wanna have this in my heart— the pressure on me that 'Why am I not giving the good life to them?' [my kids],” said Tigre.
Tigre has experienced wildfires 5 times. The first time, his house burned down in the Thomas Fire back in 2017, and most recently, he lost his Somis home in the Mountain Fire.
“I don’t know if it’s a signal to leave the United States or not,” said Tigre, who has lived in Ojai, Simi Valley, and Somis – getting uprooted each time a fire passes through.
This time, he almost lost his daughter and her baby.
“My daughter got the baby and she went into the car and she didn't even put the baby in the car seat. She put the baby on her legs. She saw the police and they says to her, ‘Hey, I'm not going to give you a ticket—just get out of here. Just leave. Save your daughter.”
Fortunately, Tigre’s daughter and her baby made it out alive, but everything else burned to the ground.
Tigre says he lost all his memories and is immediately triggered any time he catches a whiff of smoke.
“You’re living always afraid. 'Are we gonna survive this time?' I don't know. Only what I need is good memories for my family,” said Tigre.
In the midst of tragic times Tigre has received an outpouring of love and support, and a lot of that is through social media.
Tigre has cultivated a loyal fan base of over 8,000 followers on Facebook, but this isn’t the only place he’s feeling the love. It’s also through Trevor Quirk’s social media— a neighbor-turned-friend that he met during the Thomas Fire.
Quirk is a personal injury attorney by day, and is the boots on the ground whenever natural disaster strikes nearby.
His non-profit, Upper Ojai Relief, was born following the Thomas Fire. Now, it’s helping Mountain Fire victims rebuild by sharing their stories on social media.
After each story is shared there is a call for donations — from basic supplies like underwear and toiletries to more expensive items like fireproof boots.
Quirk posted Tigre’s story on Thursday. In just 4 hours, he says the community fulfilled Tigre’s Amazon wishlist.
“Five minutes after we posted his story, a lady writes me and says, I'm donating a $1,200 dollar real estate commission to him,” said Quirk, Upper Ojai Relief co-founder.
“These are things that you can recover from, and you've recovered once, and you're going to recover again, so thank you,” said Realtor, Brandy Plummer.
And Tigre’s got the eye of the tiger.
“Tigers never stop and he's gotten knocked down, but he's not stopping,” said Quirk.
To learn more about Tigre’s story and other survivors of the Mountain Fire follow Upper Ojai Relief on Facebook and Instagram.
To help Tigre and his family rebuild, donate to their GoFundMe.
