NOLENSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It’s rare for a home to be struck by lightning, but it happened this past week in Nolensville. The strike caused a fire to break out in the attic, Tuesday night.
The repairs won’t be cheap, but thankfully there’s a community stepping up to help. Seven-year-old Hayden and his five-year-old sister Lynley gave up their Saturday to support someone very special to them.
They set up a lemonade stand and sold cookies to raise funds.
“Dr. Carol has been their dentist since they were born, really,” said their father, Nathan Clingman.
Tuesday night, their neighbor and dentist’s home caught fire during a storm.
“It was incredibly random and a freak accident,” Nathan Clingman said.
The children remember the night vividly.
“That storm was really hard. I woke up and went to my mom’s. Yeah, both of us slept in her bed,” Hayden said.
The siblings had a great idea: to raise money for their neighbor.
“I wanted to be really helpful to my dentist,” Hayden said.
“They lost their house, so whatever we can do to give back we love to do,” their mother, Jillian Clingman added.
Jillian knows their kind gesture will bring tears to their dentist’s eyes.
“Losing that memorabilia of our childhood has been devastating for them, so we feel for them,” she said.
Their dad, also known as the bearded baker, pitched in by supplying the cookies.
“Showing them we’re not alone, we’re in this together and we’re here to help other people and love them where they are,” Nathan Clingman said.
The kids even received some love from the Nolensville Fire Department. The kids raised over $500 for their neighbor.
The fire did injure four firefighters at the time, but they’re all doing better now.
In a time of need, the Nolensville kids are showing when life turns sour, togetherness can always bring a touch of sweetness.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at aaron.cantrell@newschannel5.com
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
