It’s normally one of the happiest times of year. But, for thousands of people in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, it brings up memories of a holiday season which turned into a nightmare.
It was December 4th, 2017. Fire investigators say high Santa Ana winds damaged some the power grid, triggering two wildfires which merged into the massive Thomas brush fire.
Shauna Feingold, her husband Erik, and their two kids lived on Sunset Drive, in the foothills north of Ventura.
"We could see, smell smoke, and see the flames coming," said Feingold.
They had time to grab their pets, and they then went to their in-laws who lived nearby to wake them.
Tom Hinkle lived nearby, on Lincoln Drive. Hinkle says he and his wife Jenny were alerted to the threat by a neighbor, who banged on a gate and woke them up.
Both the Feingolds and the Hinkles learned the next morning that the fire had taken their homes. The 280,000 acre blaze destroyed more than a thousand buildings.
The Thomas Fire also stripped some of the hillsides above Montecito, setting the stage for January, 2018 debris flow which killed 23 people, and destroyed and damaged hundreds of additional homes.
In the wake of the fire, the question for families like the Feingolds who had lost everything was what to do next.
Shauna Feingold says they wanted to get their kids into a new home as soon as possible.
"My husband and I had a pow-wow the morning after the fire, and we just kind of looked at each other, and said you know what, we got to get through this, and be resilient for our kids," said Feingold.
It took nearly two years, and five temporary homes to get into their rebuilt house.
Feingold said you can’t forget the trauma of what happened, but thinks time has helped her family move past it.
"It was crazy rough," said Feingold. "The holidays are (still) a little bit tricky."
But, she said what it unforgettable is all the people that stepped up to help them get through the crisis.
Tom Hinkle said he and his wife, Jenny stayed with friends for a while, and initially thought about rebuilding. But, they decided it would be too tough. They also felt even if they rebuilt, it wouldn't be the same without things like their photo albums, and heirloom furniture.
He said instead of rebuilding, they bought a home in Somis.
Hinkle admits because the fire started on December 4, it’s hard not to link the holidays with memories of the blaze. But, he said they've moved on. "We're over it. We don't wallow in that," said Hinkle.
