ATLANTA — With a rake in his hands, Harry Douglas spent Friday clearing insulation from the floor of the Douglas Brothers Foundation office. His wife, Stephanie, was close by, also cleaning after a fire burned through the foundation's office and attached kitchen on Thanksgiving Day.
"I cried yesterday," Harry recalled. "When I pulled up and I ran up to the building, they told me I couldn't come in, and I just cried. I just cried because it was so much work for so many years."
The foundation is based in Clayton County and helps feed families and assist children around metro Atlanta. It is named after their sons, Harry Douglas, a former Atlanta Falcon and Toney Douglas, a former NBA basketball player. Both are Jonesboro High School graduates.
The fire happened Thursday afternoon as the Douglas family was enjoying Thanksgiving Day. They then received a call and rushed to find the Clayton County Fire Department at the duplex housing the foundation.
According to Harry, the fire department said the fire appeared to have started in the back of the building, but the cause remains under investigation.
"It's devastating, but my wife and I, we're in good spirits right now because we are just strong people," Harry said. "We believe in keeping on. We aren't going to let nothing deter us."
That's because the Douglas family knows their community needs them. Last weekend, they hosted more than 350 people in the foundation's parking lot for a Thanksgiving hot meal giveaway. Now, they're less than a month away from the foundation's annual holiday festival, where they give out more meals and toys.
"Right now, we have 220 kids, so we are bagging stuff for the 220 kids, and we are going to make sure every kid gets a bag," he said.
Thankfully the toys were stored at a different location, but the damage will still set back the foundation's year-round work.
"I serve a good God, and I know somehow, some way, we are going to continue to do what we do," he said.
As The Douglas Brothers Foundation continues to clean up, they said anyone wanting to assist can do so through the foundation's website. To help, click here.