Friends of Ivory Hut

In light of my recent trip to Seattle for IFBC, I have been thinking a lot about my fond memories of the Big Summer Potluck, an event that I attended a few weeks ago. It was a very inspiring event for me, and I was most impressed to see how everyone at the event came together as a community.  Not a single person at the potluck had an attitude of being better than anyone else in the room, and it created a very welcoming and refreshing atmosphere.

A friend in need…

Since returning from Seattle, my body has been stuck somewhere between the Eastern and Pacific time zones.  So, I got up a bit later than usual this morning.  It was mid-morning by the time I got up, went for a run, and finally signed online.  When I did, I received some very sad news.  I saw tweets and messages asking the blogging community to rally around Erika of Ivory Hut (one of the organizers of the Big Summer Potluck) whose house burned down last night. I was immediately overwhelmed with sadness and grief, and I am still choked up even as I write this many hours later.

Though I have only had the chance to meet Erika once, she has been a great inspiration to me. She is an amazing photographer, cook, and writer who has a heart of gold. I am sure many of you have been inspired by her, as well, which is why I am sharing this information with you. I think it is important that we all do what we can to help her out in this difficult time. I know I have been blown away by the support of the food blogging community, and it is my sincere hope that we will all rally around Erika and help to lessen some of her burden.

What you can do…

I am sure there will be many ways to help Erika in the coming weeks and months, and I will do my best to keep you posted.  For now, Alice of Savory Sweet Life and Maggy of Three Many Cooks have organized a site to start accepting monetary donations that will be sent to Erika immediately. She lost absolutely everything in the fire and every little bit will be a great blessing to her at this time.  Please consider visiting Friends of Ivory Hut and making a donation!