LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — After a Lexington woman lost everything in an apartment fire on Wednesday, her coworkers stepped up to collect donations to get her back on her feet.
76-year-old Molly Whitaker, a cashier at Critchfield Meats in Lexington, received a call around 10 a.m. on Wednesday just before work.
"She was getting ready to come to work and she got a call that her house was on fire," said Nicholas Critchfield, grocery manager at the store.
Her unit at the Axis Apartments on Nicholasville Road had been destroyed.
Whitaker lost everything in the fire, including all of her furniture.
She has been staying at a hotel as she gets ready to move to be closer to her family outside of Kentucky.
Critchfield said Whitaker had been working for the store for about six months.
After learning of the fire, the team at Critchfield Meats started collecting donations, first in tip jars, and then through a GoFundMe.
"It's just a very unfortunate situation to be in and I just can't imagine," Critchfield said.
Fellow employees and complete strangers have donated nearly $3,000 as of Monday evening.
"We're trying to get her back on her feet," he said. "Everything's up from here."
A GoFundMe for Whitaker can be found here.
