GoFundMe launched for family after house fire in Rocanville May 8
May 19, 2026, 2:13 pm
Nicole Taylor
Bailey Williamson and Laura Barry recently organized a GoFundMe campaign for the Greentree family following the May 8 fire at their home on Alexander Street in Rocanville.
Laura Barry said she first learned about the fire through a text message. “I got the text message saying Amanda’s house was on fire,” she said.
Barry said she was told the fire is believed to have started either from a side-by-side before spreading to the house or faulty electrical wiring.
According to Barry, the fire happened during the morning while Greentree was at work and her children were away from home. “She dropped her little boy off at my friend’s house, because my friend babysat for her little boy, and she dropped him off about 7:30 in Moosomin,” Barry said.
“I’m assuming the fire would have started about in between 8:30 and 10, because it wasn’t even 9:50 and she already texted my friend, ‘My house is on fire. I have to come get him.’” Barry said Greentree’s two sons had already left for school before the fire started. “It would have happened in at least an hour and a half, because her two oldest boys would have went to school around 8:30, 8:45, so the house wouldn’t have been on fire quite yet then,” she said. “It all happened in the matter of an hour.”
Neighbor rescuesfamily pets from fire
The family’s four dogs were rescued from the home by neighbor Lambert Myburg, who said he rushed over after his wife noticed smoke coming from the property.
“My wife was letting the dog back in, and that’s when she saw the black smoke coming up over the tree line,” Myburg said. “She said, ‘Amanda’s house is on fire.’ Myburg said he immediately ran to the home, knowing Amanda has two young children, and the front of the home was already engulfed in flames when he arrived, so he ran to the backyard where he found a sliding door open. “The one dog was already there waiting for me,” he said. After getting the first dog outside, Myburg said he went back into the smoke-filled home to search for the remaining dogs. “I could hear them barking, but it was black smoke in the house, so I couldn’t see them,” he said. “I was running around the house trying to find these pugs.” Myburg said he briefly left the home after being unable to locate the dogs, but decided he could not leave them behind.
“I thought, ‘No, I can’t leave them,’ ”he said. “My conscience just told me, ‘No, go have another look.” He said he eventually found the dogs inside a kennel-style enclosure and brought them safely outside. “At the end of the day, it’s still a living thing that needed help, and I was there to help.”
Myburg said he believes a closed door between the mud room and the rest of the home may have helped slow the spread of the fire.
“I think what saved the rest of the house was the door separating the mud room from the rest of the house which was closed.” He said the fire department arrived shortly after he got the dogs out and checked the home to ensure no one else was inside. Myburg said the children appeared shocked when they were reunited with their pets. “The boys were very shocked,” he said.
Despite the danger, Myburg said he does not regret his decision. “I’m glad I did it,” he said. “I know Amanda, and they love their animals and so it obviously meant a great deal to her.”
Donations helping family recover
Barry said the family has been staying with family members, friends and at the Rocanville motel while arranging more permanent accommodations. Some personal belongings were also recovered from the home.
“They found a rental in Rocanville,” she said. “They’re doing better. They’re taking it one day at a time.”
Williamson and Barry said they wanted to organize support for the family because of the kind of people Amanda Greentree and her family are within the community.
“She would do anything for anybody.” Barry said she initially considered creating another form of fundraiser before deciding to set up a GoFundMe campaign.
“It was either the GoFundMe, it was an option in my mind, or I thought about starting up a bank account that she can access and getting people to send in e-transfers or whatnot,” she said. “I personally just thought that was a good idea for her, because she deserves it. Her and her boys and her husband really do.”
Williamson, who worked with Greentree at the nursing home, said she also wanted to help because of her connection to the family.
“She is just an amazing person,” Williamson said. “She would do anything for anyone if she could.”
Williamson said she believes Greentree would have done the same for another family in need. “If this would have happened to someone else I feel like Amanda would have stepped up and helped them,” she said.
Williamson added that she has known Greentree’s children for years from when she worked as a lifeguard.
Barry said the fundraiser was also created to help the family with accommodations and replacing household items following the fire.
“That is also part of the reason we set up the GoFundMe, was to help her with stuff like that, like accommodations,” she said.
Community support continues
Barry said the response from the community has been significant, with donations and offers of support continuing to come in from Rocanville, Moosomin and surrounding communities.
“The community is doing so good,” Barry said. “The GoFundMe is doing good.
I’m actually so happy with how the community is coming together. For the Moosomin people, they’ve been doing really good too. I’ve had numerous donations come in from people in Moosomin.”
Barry said the family has now received enough clothing donations and is mainly looking for household items as they settle into their rental home.
“They’ve got most things sorted out for clothes,” Barry said after speaking with Greentree. “Maybe just some household items like kitchen stuff, toys for her little boy.”
Barry said the family may also need furniture and other items for their rental home.
“I think Amanda was looking for dressers and furniture for the new house,” she said.
Barry added that people can still support the family in ways beyond financial donations. “Just be supportive to Amanda,” she said.
“Check in on her, see if her and her boys are doing okay,” said Williamson. “Like, say you see a couch on the garage sale site, just tag her in it and say, ‘Hey, I thought of you. Maybe this will help.’ ”
The girls are also encouraging people to continue sharing the fundraiser online to help spread awareness and support for the family.
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