From Myken Paradis

New Glarus

To the Editor:

Over the past several weeks, we have found ourselves sitting with a level of gratitude that is almost impossible to put into words.

Since the fire at our home on April 1, our family has been completely overwhelmed by the love, support, generosity, prayers, messages, donations, meals, clothing, supplies, and kindness that have poured in from our surrounding communities, including New Glarus, Blanchardville, Hollandale, Argyle, Mineral Point, Monroe, Monticello, Belleville and so many others.

We have been racking our brains trying to figure out how to properly say thank you to everyone. The truth is, there may never be a perfect way to express what this has meant to us. We hope this letter, along with personal thank-yous still to come, can at least begin to show the depth of our appreciation.

To every person who donated, shared, prayed, sent a message, dropped something off, checked in, offered help, gave our kids something familiar, or simply held our family in your thoughts: thank you. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.

If you have reached out and we have not responded, please know we are truly sorry. This past month has been a whirlwind, and in many ways, we feel like we are just starting to come up for air. Every message, every act of kindness, and every offer of help has mattered more than you know, even if we have not been able to personally respond yet.

We also know that our surrounding communities have experienced a lot of heartbreak in recent weeks. There have been accidents, losses, health emergencies, and families facing their own incredibly difficult moments. Please know those families are also in our hearts and prayers. Our family has been carried by the strength of this community, and we are holding others close who are walking through their own pain right now too.

As parents, we are trying to turn this traumatic event into a life lesson for our kids. We want them to see what it means when people show up for one another. We want them to understand gratitude in a deeper way than words alone could ever teach. We want them to remember that even though we lost so many material things, we did not lose each other. And that is something we will never take for granted.

Before this happened, we always tried to give back when and where we could. But something has shifted inside of us through this experience. When you are on the receiving end of this much love, it changes you. It humbles you. It reminds you how deeply people can show up for one another.

So our promise is this: when the time comes, we will continue to pay this forward. We will never forget what it felt like to be supported when life felt completely upside down, and we will do our best to be that kind of support for others.

To our family, friends, neighbors, local businesses, churches, schools, and everyone who has helped carry us through this: thank you will never feel big enough.

But we mean it with every part of our hearts.

With love and deep gratitude,

Myken, Mike, Kaden, Tenley, Pryor, and Maverick

The Paradis-Dammen Family