Joe Browne Jr. has quietly built a legacy living in Terlton, Oklahoma.

It started at the donut shop he owned for years in nearby Cleveland. Joe knew when customers were facing hard times and would loan them money, knowing it might not be repaid. It grew as Joe, together with his late wife, took in local kids when they needed someone to care for them – even if it was for months at a time. It continues today as Joe drives a friend about an hour one way for regular medical treatment.

“Grandpa Joe helps everybody,” Marilyn Braden says about her dad, who lost his home of 45 years to a wildfire.

During a massive wildfire outbreak in Oklahoma that started March 14, Joe and several family members beat back a fire threatening his grandson’s home a few miles south. Two days later, they toiled to protect Joe’s home as 70 mph winds whipped flames toward it.

“It just rolled through them cedar breaks and everything like a freight train, and there wasn’t any stopping it,” Joe said.

The fire melted the line to the Terlton water tower, leaving Joe and his family no way to fight it. Then the winds shifted.

“There was nothing to do but run,” Joe said.

Joe made it out with his truck, a few photos, the family Bible and the clothes on his back. As a woodworker, Joe’s home was filled with pieces he’d made for family members: a bookcase, a dining set, personalized rocking horses for the grandkids. He meant for them to be inherited, but all of them were burned to ash.

Marilyn lost her home, too. She brought Joe with her to a Red Cross shelter for help.

“I don’t go to people for help. I never have. That’s why it’s so hard,” Joe said, choking back tears.

Joe and Marilyn had a place to go but talked with a Red Cross shelter worker before getting some donated clothing and other necessities to take with them. It was his second experience with Red Cross disaster relief. The Red Cross had been there for his family in 1951 during floods that covered about 2 million acres in Kansas and Missouri.

A few days later, Joe was back where his home had been, wearing clothes that fit him but weren’t his. He leaned on a rake as he surveyed what was left. A scorched cinderblock wall that used to form part of his two-story house. His woodworking tools stood in their normal spots, their metal frames blackened and twisted from the flames that had consumed the shop around them. A shed was still there but was warped by the heat, and everything in it was ruined.

In the ashes of his house, he recognized a melted record collection. He managed to salvage a few keepsake figurines.

Joe said he’d be staying at a relative’s rental house. He fought through tears as he mentioned only two of his kids and grandkids had called to see how he was doing. Marilyn came by to check on her dad. In a few more days, they came to a wildfire relief and recovery resource center together.

As Joe visited with a Red Cross caseworker, Marilyn talked about how her dad was doing. He was about to turn 85. He didn’t feel like the rental house was right. But the harder part for both of them was feeling alone.

“People see him in the grocery store and turn and go the other way,” Marilyn said. “They don’t know how to talk to him.”

Joe, Marilyn and hundreds of Oklahomans impacted by these wildfires are starting on a long road to recovery, and they can’t do it alone. The Red Cross is supporting them throughout the process. If you or someone you know were affected, help is available by calling 1-800-RED CROSS. Know that it’s normal to have a lot of feelings during this time. You can contact the Disaster Distress Helpline for free if you need to talk to someone at 1-800-985-5990 or text “TalkWithUs’ to 66746.

Families need support today. Please click, text or call to support Red Cross Disaster Relief and help people affected by disasters like wildfires, storms and countless other crises. Visit redcross.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small.