Caitlin Phibbs was resting peacefully under doctor’s orders on March 6, unaware of the wildfires headed in her direction. She was 8 months pregnant confined to bedrest. Her fiancé, Jacob Vandorn, is a member of the Selman and Woodward fire departments, and he was fighting fire miles away.
I was in a 6 by 6 (fire truck) when they said the fire jumped Highway 34 north of Woodward. My gut just sank as I knew it was headed towards our house and knew I couldn’t get there in time.
Their house was 16 miles north of Woodward. The key word here is “was.”
Fortunately Caitlin was able to escape uninjured from the fire. Today she is cuddling her recently born son, Wade, as she stands with Jacob and their other son, Wyatt, 2 years old. They lost everything in the fire and are faced with starting over.
The young farm and ranching family didn’t exactly lose everything. They still have their family, but now must accumulate the various accruements that accompany everyday life.
The AFR Women’s Cooperative has started an on-line registry at Amazon to collect items for the young family.
