Hard-hit family reels again

Community gives craftsman hope he'll survive losing workshop in fire

LIANNE ELLIOTT

PETER LEE, RECORD STAFF Jerry Weber, his wife, Lila, and their children -- son Sam, 8, (centre), Elisa, 9, and Josiah, 12 -- gathered yesterday on what's left of Jerry's furniture design workshop at 2198 Sandhills Rd. in Wilmot Township. Fire destroyed the workshop recently.

WILMOT TOWNSHIP (Oct 15, 2004)

It's been one hardship after another for the Weber family.

Jerry Weber's furniture design business folded when demand decreased after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Then his wife, Lila, had to quit her social work job when she suffered serious whiplash in a car accident last year.

All the while, the Webers were consumed with worry about their youngest son, who was born with a pancreas disorder.

Now, the Kitchener family is dealing with yet another setback.

Weber's workshop in Wilmot Township, where he was rebuilding his furniture business, was destroyed in a fire two weeks ago. He lost $30,000 in tools and his only source of income. His insurance will not cover all his losses.

"At this point, you want to give up," said Weber, shaking his head yesterday as he examined the concrete foundation where his workshop once stood.

"But then you realize that maybe there is hope out there. Maybe we can do this."

The hope has come from the local Mennonite community as well as friends, family and neighbours of the couple, who live near the Auditorium.

All have rallied behind Weber, his wife and their three children, offering them food, tools and even a break on insurance costs. A trust fund has been opened in the family's name.

"They are a giving, kind, loving family," said family friend Marny Pelletier. She and a neighbour, Amy Snider, set up the account and are co-ordinating some of the relief efforts.

"We see them hit over and over again and there's no way we're going to let them lose everything again," Pelletier said. "We have to pull together for them."

Their determination has motivated Weber to rebuild his business once again.

It won't be the first time he's started from scratch.

He was first forced to shut down in 1996, when his son, Sam, was born with hyperinsulinemia, meaning his pancreas produces too much insulin.

The boy initially needed 24-hour care and regular injections. Weber and his wife were at his bedside constantly and relied on welfare and the local food bank to get by. He's healthier now but his condition needs close monitoring for life.

The Sept. 11 attacks also affected Weber's business. The uncertain times caused a drop in business at a high-end furniture store in Toronto that Weber was designing for.

He had to declare bankruptcy and start over.

He set up shop in the century-old workshop on his parents' farm on Sandhills Road in Wilmot Township, between New Hamburg and Mannheim.

He landed good clients, including a woman who had him make intricate chairs, bookshelves and other items for her home near Washington, Ont.

But the fire the morning of Sept. 30 destroyed his tools and some pieces he was working on, including an antique organ from a St. Jacobs church that Weber was converting to a desk.

The blaze, probably triggered by a spark in the furnace, started when no one was around. By the time firefighters arrived, the fire was roaring.

It destroyed everything, leaving only a pile of burned debris and the foundation.

"I don't know what tomorrow will bring," Weber said. "But we have hope that we can get through this."

lelliott@therecord.com

HOW TO HELP

Donations to can be made to the Weber family at any TD Canada Trust bank branch.

The account is called the Weber Family Fire Fund.