http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378 All: </p> Thanks for your concern about my brother, Nebiel, who lost everything he owned in the wildfires in Malibu. </p> His was one of the first to go, and made headlines as a result. We watched flames ravage the house where he rented a room and his church live on CNN. The next morning, we found a photo of his home on fire, flames spilling out of his bedroom (see photo below), on the cover of the New York Times. It was a sad and surreal experience. </p> Although he lost his collection of street paintings gathered from his travels, journals, photos, etc., he was safe and so were his roommates. Ever the optimist, he is handling this experience with grace and looking forward to the future. </p> He is in the process of getting back the basics - a home, clothes, etc., and truly appreciates all support, be it financial or in spirit. Thanks for your concern and generosity in helping him get back on his feet! </p> Mahela </p> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mahela/1873769685/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2400/1873769685_61876211da.jpg" height="500" alt="" width="398" /></a> </p> en-us poor baby.....life sounds pretty bad if you had a house and art and collections from around the world in malibu. How about collecting some insurance? kreature@pledgie.com Tue, 06 Nov 2007 07:37:16 -0800 http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378#comment_151 http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378#comment_151 To kreature: A lot of people feel that way, assuming everyone in Malibu is rich. The thing you don't know is that my brother was just starting out, a recent college grad looking for work, a renter, with tons of school debt. In any case, to criticize someone's misfortune is really inappropriate. mahelas@pledgie.com Tue, 06 Nov 2007 10:13:05 -0800 http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378#comment_152 http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378#comment_152 Thank you so much to everyone for your contributions. It's helping Nebiel immensely! mahelas@pledgie.com Wed, 07 Nov 2007 08:43:23 -0800 http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378#comment_153 http://www.pledgie.com/campaigns/378#comment_153