HAZELWOOD, Mo. — For the past four years, Shana Poole-Jones has been committed to helping others.
During the height of the pandemic, Poole-Jones lost six family members and four friends to COVID-19.
"It was so unreal. I figured I had to do something," Poole-Jones told 5 On Your Side in May of 2020.
She started a non-profit called "Keep Pushing Incorporated" and turned her sadness into service.
Poole-Jones collected food, toiletries and more. She sat the items on her "Grab 'N Go" table set up on her front lawn in Maplewood and let people have them for free.
"Early this year, we had started helping St. Louis City officials shelter people ... our unhoused families," Poole-Jones said.
She and her family moved to Hazelwood in north St. Louis County just three months ago, but on the morning of Nov. 11 tragedy struck.
"I saw a big fire," Poole-Jones' 4-year-old son, Tristan, said.
"He came around the corner from the kitchen, saying 'fire, fire!'" Poole-Jones said.
Tristan ran and screamed those words to his grandma.
Neighbors helped the two get out of their burning house safely.
Poole-Jones returned home and couldn't believe what she saw.
"I had only been gone for about ten minutes. I pulled up thinking that could not be my house. It's rough because we lost everything. I don't have nothing to hold on to, but God," she said.
She added that this year has been tough for her and her loved ones.
In August, her 50-year-old brother, Michael Lewis, suffered a heart attack and died.
Now, the family's new home is a pile of charred rubble, days before Thanksgiving.
"We lost furniture, clothes [and] Christmas decorations we recently bought. We don't even have a mailbox. Thankfully, the American Red Cross helped us with a gift card of more than $600, which helped put us in a hotel, but that's all gone now. We are on a tight budget and we really don't know what's going to happen. When you're in a hotel for the holiday and you're just looking around, it's rough," Poole-Jones said.
She said she and her insurance company are still waiting to talk with her property owners before she can actually move forward.
In the meantime, her brand, "Keep Pushing" now has a new meaning.
"Yes, it's very hard. We got to keep pushing because if I don't be an example to the people around me, push past our struggles and what we're going through, then who's gonna be the example?" Poole-Jones asked. "I want the people I serve to know Ms. Shana truly understands what you go through. Yes, I know it's going to be a tough Thanksgiving because even as I serve you, I do not have, but I am going to keep serving."
"I have never been through anything like that. I was extremely scared. It's something when you realize we lost everything just like that, but God has been good to us. My neighbors came out and put socks and shoes on my feet. Another person went and bought me a jogging suit. We may not have material things at this time, but they can all be replaced. I'm just thankful to be alive," Delores Fears, Poole-Jones' mother, said.
"I also want to thank a special group of strangers who helped us and made me cry. I didn't know that these people had been following my charity and how I help people online. When they heard my house burned to the ground, these complete strangers drove from Arkansas and brought me all kinds of things including bedding and comforters. I thank God for their generosity," Poole-Jones said.
If you'd like to help the family, just click here to donate to her GoFundMe and help her "Keep Pushing."