It was her dream to rebuild and stay on Florida Street. Close to family and friends she grew to love for more than a decade. But that dream cut short when 62-year-old Almyra Thomas suffered a heart attack and died only a week after she was rescued from a fire that destroyed her home.
"I told her to come live with me and she would say, 'OK, I'm coming.' The next day I'd come back and 'oh no, I'm going to stay,' so this is where she wanted to be and she was happy here, so she died happy," said Thomas' sister, Mary Carenter.
Happy. That's how friends and family describe Thomas, as they call Miss Maddie.
"She was every one's friend, even down to the kids. They would see her and holler, 'hey Miss Maddie!' I mean, it's going to take a toll on the kids as well as take a toll on the grown folks," said Miss Maddie's friend, Jacqueline Boone.
Without insurance and in tough times, her family fears they won't be able to give her a proper burial and they're asking the community to help out, knowing Miss Maddie would do it for them.
She told us a day after the fire just how much she loved the community and was grateful to be apart of it.
"It makes me feel good to let me know where friends are and that's how close we are. We all stick together," she said in the July 2 interview.
If you can help the family, donations are being accepted at Chase Bank for the Almyra 'Maddie' Thomas fund.
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