By Ashley M. Casey
Staff Writer
On Dec. 7, 2017, Dan and Pat Damon had eight minutes’ notice to evacuate their home in Fallbrook, California. The 60 mph Santa Ana winds swept a wildfire into northern San Diego County. The Lilac Fire, as fire officials named it, leveled nearly a third of the homes in the Rancho Monserate Mobile Home Park, including the Damons’.
Dan Damon, a musician who grew up in East Syracuse, saw his tools of the trade turn to ashes, including his “Orchestra in Keys,” a multi-keyboard setup that allowed him to play as a one-man band. Now, he and his wife of 39 years are left to pick up the pieces.
“Our past was our past, and that was our first chapter in life,” Pat Damon told NBC7 in San Diego. “This is our second chapter of our life, so we get two chances now.”
The Damons face a rough road ahead of them. A few months before the fire, their insurance company canceled their homeowners’ insurance because of the high fire risk. Wildfires destroyed more than 300,000 acres in California in December. The Lilac Fire, which raged from Dec. 7 to 16, destroyed 4,100 acres.
“They’re just not insuring around here, the private companies,” Dan Damon said. “I got caught in a three-month gap and sure enough, that’s when the fire happened.”
“They were in a suburb of San Diego, never dreaming that the fires would come down, but those Santa Ana winds brought [them] down,” said Damon’s sister Diane Geloff, who lives in Cicero.
The Damons are working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for temporary housing and the state of California to recoup some of their costs. Additionally, their neighbor, Joe Hall, started a GoFundMe campaign to help Pat and Dan Damon get back on their feet.
“We don’t expect [donations], but we sure are thankful,” Dan Damon said. “I’m usually pretty independent, so this has been a tough one.”
The Damons have been staying with their son in Orange County, 85 miles away from Fallbrook. Dan Damon said friends and neighbors have been pitching in to support them as well.
“There’s been some wonderful people around here. A lot of people stepped forward,” he said. “You don’t realize they’re all there, but they’re there when you need them.”
A symbol of hope
Fortunately, Damon had already packed some of his equipment for an upcoming gig, so he’s been able to keep up with his musical schedule.
“He had loaded some of his stuff to play a Christmas party so that has saved him,” said Geloff. “He was able to do all his Christmas commitments.”
Geloff said she often attended her brother’s performances after their mother died when he was in his 20s.
“I’m sort of like a mom to him,” she said. “He’s very special to me.”
Geloff is distributing flyers and putting up posters asking the community to contribute to her brother’s cause.
“I just feel so bad for him. I’m doing everything for him I can,” she said.
“She’s always right in my corner,” Damon said of his sister.
Damon said his entire block was “melted,” but one item on his property survived: a spotlit statue of an American eagle atop a globe with the United States painted on it.
“Sure enough, it still lights and it still says ‘God bless America’ on this globe,” Damon said. “The rest of the entire block I live on was [covered in] about a foot and a half [of] ashes.”
“It was just all so symbolic,” Geloff said, noting that the fire took place on the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The Damons’ goal is to rebuild their home on their lot in Rancho Monserate.
“They want to rebuild they want to go back there on their lot. All the things they love are there,” Geloff said. “It just suits them to a T, but they can’t go back without insurance.”
Damon said he has made his home and his livelihood in California — he moved there in 1978 — but he returns to Central New York often.
“I don’t forget my good roots,” he said.
Despite the massive loss, Damon said he still feels fortunate to have the support of his family and friends, and he is still able to continue his music career with the small amount of equipment he saved.
“I left from back east with a pocketful of dreams, and about every single one of them has come true,” he said.
To donate to Dan and Pat Damon, visit gofundme.com/DanDamon.
