Monday July 25, 2022, started as any other day for Rosa Quiroz and her family. It was somewhat of a special day though, as she had been very excited because her 12-year-old son Christian had asked her if it was ok for him to go buy dinner for their family that day. Quiroz could not believe that her son, who is the oldest of six kids, had saved up enough money to be able to buy the family dinner. She looked at Christian with so much pride and joy knowing that he will always look out for his family. But little did she know the chaos that the day would hold for her and more than 65 other families in her apartment complex.

Dueniz, Rosa and Cristhian Quiroz

As the family was gathering around the dinner table ready to enjoy a delicious meal that her son had bought for them with all his money, they started to notice something strange. “We started to see smoke come out from the air vents and my children began to feel sick and cough uncontrollably,” said Rosa Quiroz.

That is when they realized that something was very wrong, so they gathered the whole family and quickly ran out their apartment. It was there, among the chaos, that they saw their worst nightmare. The apartment complex was engulfed in flames.

Thankfully help had already arrived but as she saw the red and blue lights from the fire and police department her life flashed before her eyes. All she could think about is keeping her family safe and how would they recover from this.

“We have lived in The Thicket apartments for a year now, it was the place that we called home and felt safe and now we don’t know what we are going to do,” said Quiroz.

Quiroz and her family are one of 68 families being helped by the American Red Cross Texas Gulf Coast region. More than 140 people have been assisted by the Red Cross who were victims of the terrible apartment fire in the Greenspoint area in Houston.  

“When I looked around the parking lot and saw the Red Cross I felt relief, it was a blessing that they were here to help us open a new door and start over,” said Quiroz.

After visiting with the Red Cross, Quiroz and her family have now been able to find a safe place to stay as they begin to rebuild their lives piece by piece. She mentions that it will be a long journey before her family is completely back on their feet but thanks to the Red Cross, they now have a place to start.

Even though the family couldn’t enjoy the wonderful meal Christian bought- she knows that soon they will be back around the kitchen table to enjoy many more meals as a family… and for that she is very thankful. 

The Red Cross continues to assist the families that have been affected by the fire in the Greenspoint are and hopes that just like Quiroz and her family- they will be able to start their recovery process and heal from this devastating experience.