- Roy and Stacy Pizzirusso are celebrating the reconstruction of their home with a housewarming on Saturday, Feb. 22, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Pizzirussos’ home was the first site-built home to break ground after the Yarnell Hill Fire, which destroyed 127 homes—about a quarter of the homes in the small, unincorporated community.
Farm Bureau Financial Services, the Pizzirussos’ insurer, and agent Jill Steigleman will be hosting the event, which is open to the Pizzirussos friends in Yarnell and Peeples Valley.
The Pizzirussos broke ground in mid-September last year. Their goal was to recreate the home they had lost. They had a jump on most of their neighbors: the floor plans for their two-bedroom home were among the important papers they took with them when they evacuated, and the walk-around stone fireplace that was the centerpiece of their home survived the fire.
Roy and Stacy made minor changes during the rebuild, updating the tile, carpeting and fixtures, and eliminating a troublesome wall. The home passed its final inspection January 15.
Stacy admits the combination of old and new was an odd sensation. Their home felt familiar, but different. And while they look out the window at the same landscape, it, too, has been transformed by fire. Stacy expected it might take some getting used to, but has found it “amazingly comfortable.”
“It took a lot of the sting out of what happened to be able to get into back our own home,” she said.
The home was built by Yarnell Homes, owned by Mike Manone. Manone first came to Yarnell as a volunteer with the Church of Joy in Glendale. After several visits, Manone wanted to make Yarnell his home. He established a residence and become an active member of the community, joining the Yarnell-Peeples Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Yarnell Community Garden Project.
Last November Manone opened Yarnell Homes, with an office on Yarnell’s main street, and has completed two homes for survivors of the Yarnell Hill Fire. The second home he broke ground on was completed in December, just in time for Christmas. That home was the first site-built home to be completed since the fire.
To date, 56 building permits have been issued in Yarnell, with several homes completed.
Stacy said it feels good to be back in their home, doing their thing. And she’s glad to be in a position to share that with other people. She has heard from people who have followed their story since the beginning and is grateful for the connection people seem to feel.
“Not just us, Roy and Stacy, but Yarnell as a community,” she says “That they’re watching us, that closely, rebuild and get our lives back together.”
About Yarnell Hill Recovery Group
Exiled from their homes and divided by the closure of Highway 89, a group of 20 Yarnell and Peeples Valley residents conferred in person and by phone about how to rebuild their fire-ravaged community.
Out of that conversation, the all-volunteer Yarnell Hill Recovery Group was formed with a steering committee made up of five key leaders representing organizations that have long provided services to residents: the Yarnell-Peeples Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Yarnell Community Center, the Yarnell Community Presbyterian Church, the Fire Department and Weaver Mountains – People Who Care.
Under the direction of the steering committee, a dozen volunteer sub-committees have been formed to provide resources for everything from emergency housing and financial assistance to clean up and rebuilding. The group’s website,www.YarnellHillRecoveryGroup.
The group was recently recognized by Arizona and Yavapai County as the official recovery group for the Yarnell Hill Fire.
The Yarnell Community Presbyterian Church, acting as the Yarnell Hill Recovery Group’s fiscal agent, has set up an account for the Yarnell Hill Recovery Group though the National Bank of Arizona, account #76 0000 2730, Routing #122105320. There is a Pay Pal button for donations at www.YarnellHillRecoveryGroup.
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