Following house fire, community raises more than $1,300 in one day

College students often scrimp and save to move off campus and fill their very own property with furniture and belongings. As one group of Tulane juniors discovered late Monday, however, all that work and money can disappear overnight.

On the night of Aug. 13, a fire started in an off-campus home on Joseph Street. Three Tulane juniors were living in the house at the time, but none were home when the fire started. It is still unclear as to what caused the fire.

house fire
A screenshot from a video posted to the GoFundMe page depicts fire damage, Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018. (Pratiksha Parulekar)

Pratiksha Parulekar, a junior at Tulane, lost much of her clothing and furniture during the house fire. She started a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the cost of buying new furniture and clothing.

“In no way do I expect to reach a $1000, but I would appreciate every single donation with all of my heart, and put it to the best of use,” she said on her GoFundMe page.

Parulekar underestimated the support she would receive from the Tulane community following the house fire. In fact, she exceeded her goal of $1000 within the first day — 59 people have raised at least $1,382 as of Thursday afternoon.

“I’m so incredibly thankful for the love and support y’all have shown me,” Parulekar said in a Facebook post. “The last couple of days have been a whirlwind, but to everyone who donated, shared, offered me a place to crash or offered me literally anything, just know that I am extremely grateful, and your help really means the world to me!”

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