OUR SAY: Help bring some cheer this Xmas for Bethanga family hit by fire

Social distancing while out in the community and similar common sense measures will continue to be vital.

But the prospect of being able to have all the family around for this festive season will be our oh-so-welcome reality.

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After close to two years of the pandemic, this will be a just bookend to such difficult times.

We'll be able to truly get into the spirit of Christmas, which aside from the mental health boost will be also a significant injection of trade for the Border's retail sector.

For one family though, this Christmas could be anything but wonderful after fire ripped through their Bethanga home on Thursday morning.

RELATED: Bethanga fire that gutted home not suspicious, fundraiser launched

Thankfully, no one was inside when what has been determined a non-suspicious fire took hold.

The damage was complete, with everything in the house destroyed.

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That has left Sinead Culling and Lance Parker and their children, Brooke and Bree, with nothing but the clothes they were wearing at the time.

As is always said, what's most important is no one hurt or even lost their life in the fire.

But with Christmas just weeks away, it is still shaping up to be a difficult one for a family that has been part of the Bethanga community all their lives.

Their sentimental belongings cannot be replaced, but there is something we all can do to help them restore a bit of day-to-day normality.

Elite Property Management director Kate Hobbs has called on the wider community to contribute to efforts to raise money to, as she says, "get them back on their feet".

"Merely six weeks out from Christmas, this beautiful local Bethanga family have been devastated by a freak house fire. Let's try and bring back some cheer for them this Christmas."

A GoFundMe fundraiser has already reached $1000 and so, with even small individual contributions, the $10,000 goal should be well within reach.

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