2020 has been a rough year for everyone, with the COVID-19 pandemic being enough of a challenge on its own. But life has plenty of ways to throw unfortunate curveballs. For example, Oscar-winnig actress Jennifer Lawrence and her family are dealing with the barn within their Camp Hi-Ho summer camp in Simpsonville, Kentucky burning down late last Friday. Luckily, the incident wasn’t nearly as devastating as it could have been, and Lawrence has now thanked the firefighters for their hard work putting out the flames.
Camp High Ho announced on social media last Saturday morning that the barn had burned down, with those in charge saying they were “mourning the loss of years of hard work and memories that occurred in these walls.” Fortunately, no humans and animals were harmed in the blaze, and here’s the statement Jennifer Lawrence put out, obtained by People:
I want to thank my Louisville community for reaching out to my family and me following the devastating fire that sadly destroyed a significant part of Camp Hi Ho. Thankfully, because of our amazing firefighters and first responders, no one was hurt and all of the animals were kept safe. I grew up on that farm, going to Camp Hi Ho every summer. When my brother Blaine took it over, he applied his creative mind and fun loving spirit and expanded a camp that was already the coolest, because it was the only place where kids could do whatever they wanted. A muddy messy paradise.
Jennifer Lawrence added that she’s grateful to Camp High Ho for the “amazing childhood memories,” and that she and the rest of her family will help Blaine Lawrence get through this difficult time. Lawrence and her family are also thankful for the “widespread support from the community” to get Camp High Ho “back up and running” so that it will be ready to welcome kids in summer 2021.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise at least $1.5 million to restore the portions of Camp High Ho that were destroyed by the fire, which originated from somewhere near the garage in the back of the barn and destroyed the camp’s primary operating spaces. According to WLKY, it took nearly 30 firefighters half a dozen trucks to get the fire under control since the campsite is in a rural area that lacks hydrants. Fire investigators are still looking into what specifically caused the fire.
She may be a Hollywood powerhouse now, but it’s good to see that Jennifer Lawrence is still there to support her family in their time of need. And while it doesn’t sound like Camp High Ho is lacking for people who care about the property and can provide assistance, no doubt Jennifer Lawrence’s involvement will help draw more attention to her family’s plight and pave the way for even more donations to roll in.
While Jennifer Lawrence has been acting professionally for 14 years now, it was her breakthrough role as Ree Dolly in 2010’s Winter’s Bone that introduced her to a lot of people. Of course, playing Mystique in the “First Class” era X-Men movies and Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger Games film series catapulted her to worldwide fame. Lawrence’s credits in recent years include Passengers, Mother! and Red Sparrow.
You can see Jennifer Lawrence next in the A24 movie Red, White and Water (which she’s also producing) and Netflix’s Don’t Look Up. Learn what movies have specific release slots for next year in our 2021 release schedule.
