FIVE year-old Isaac Stace was farewelled by family, friends and community members on Saturday, with a moving funeral service kindly donated by WT Howard Funerals.
Isaac died when the caravan he was sleeping in caught fire on the family's property at Melinga.
A community appeal quickly got underway last week, when knowledge of the family's humble living situation and the loss of all their clothing and personal belongings, galvanised the support of the local community.
Webb Bros Taree and WT Howard Funerals have been accepting donations on behalf of the family and both say the community have been generous in their support.
A trust fund established by Webb Bros, has now reached $20,627, including a $15,000 individual donation received last week and a further $247 collected at the funeral.
Dave Callaughan said that it was good to see the community come out and support the family at the funeral.
"It was a good turnout and a lovely service.
"We are continuing to collect donations on behalf of the family and we may be organising a fundraising auction in the near future. At this stage cash donations will be most helpful," he said.
WT Howard Funerals covered all costs associated with Isaac's funeral with the support of other local businesses including: Manning Florist who donated all the flowers, Taree West Bakery took care of the catering, RL Visual Eulogies created a visual tribute to Isaac's life and Bryce Berridge prepared Isaac's resting place.
General manager of WT Howard Funerals, Belinda Crossingham, said when company staff arrived at the Stace property on the night of the fire, they quickly realised the family was living in 'pioneering style' accommodation - and were overwhelmed with the urge to assist them in any way they could.
"They are an honest and hard-working family, who moved here from their family-owned 4000 acre property in Bingara, for a better life. The property they shared with their extended family out west required extensive maintenance with little time left over to be together.
"Their main purpose in moving here was to spend more time with their children.
"In the eight months since they moved here they have worked hard to produce much of their own food, raising animals and establishing big vegetable gardens.
"The only buildings on their Melinga property are a converted dairy and the caravan which burnt down.
"The old dairy has solar power, but without a water pump the family has no running water, so when the fire broke out they had to use buckets in an attempt to extinguish the flames.
"They were in here with us every day last week, in preparation for Isaac's funeral, and they indicated that they could never have got through this sad time without the support they have received from the community.
"They are truly one of the nicest, most humble families you can imagine and we hope that given enough time, their treasured memories of Isaac will help them move forward," Belinda said.
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