Despite losing almost everything, a Cobargo wildlife sanctuary have vowed to rebuild and continue helping animals.
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Like so many displaced by the New Year's Eve fires, Gary Henderson and Sara Tilling have been showering at the Bega Showgrounds, their laundry done in the mobile van.
Within two days of the fire the duo got back to their property in Cobargo where they raise and care for kangaroos, but it had been wiped out, just one charred shed remained.
The pair said they were heartbroken to find some of their animals electrocuted by falling power lines, or burned alive, while they had to euthanise others.
The couple nearly gave up, Sara describing the trauma of Gary broken and bawling on his knees after having to end the lives of animals they had raised.
They had come home with nothing except a trailer full of feed for the animals, but friends quickly rallied around the pair with a GoFundMe page in the hopes of rebuilding the sanctuary.
"They have been feeding and helping the animals that are appearing from the ash," they said.
By Thursday the fundraiser had reached more than $70,000 of the $100,000 goal and the couple have already been putting the money to good use, rebuilding enclosures for injured animals.
While grief-stricken and shell-shocked by the loss of everything except for one charred shed, Gary and Sara said the support from the community had given them strength to keep pushing forward.
"In some of our darkest times we have sat and read all the comments on the GoFundMe page - It is this that is driving us to rebuild what will be an amazing safe haven for our beloved wildlife forever," the pair shared on Facebook Wednesday.
"To sit on 'our hill' without our mob or all the wild roos around us was just too much to bare. The rawness and grief still hovers just below the surface and just writing this makes me cry, but with each day a little bit more strength shines through."
Sara said it was devastating to lose the animals they had already cared for, but animals far and wide were suffering now and the sanctuary had to go on, to help.
"Our wildlife needs us now more than ever, our guys will never be forgotten, but we know that this is where we belong," she said.
"We will spend every cent on ensuring the property is the best it can be, we will be accountable for all that you have all given."
If you would like to donate, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/wildlife-fire-ground-carers?fbclid=IwAR3wBfXU3IHW2Wzs0xxuqXJWkv4nFoUJ1d5dpvELnnIXjp3JivZD-LiGKhQ
