By Troy Landreville – Maple Ridge – Pitt Meadows Times
Two Maple Ridge boys are hosting a drink stand this week, for friends of theirs recently affected by a house fire.
On Aug. 9, Pitt Meadows fire crews responded to a house fire in the 19100 block of Mitchell Road just before 5 p.m.
Two children escaped unharmed while their grandparents suffered from smoke inhalation.
The children’s mother was away from the home at the time of the fire but has since returned.
Christian Johan Serdar, aged 37, of Pitt Meadows, was found dead by firefighters extinguishing the blaze, in a ground-floor bedroom.
Now, a week later the family is still picking up the pieces.
And a pair of Thomas Haney students are doing what they can to help their friends.
Matthew Garnett, 13, and Noah Dobie, 14, are hosting a drink stand at 12617 203rd St., on the south-west corner of 203rd Street and Golden Ears Way.
Drinks and freezies are for sale, with proceeds going to the Xiao family.
The fire impacted Garnett and his family on a personal level. On Aug. 9, he received a jarring text from a friend’s sister.