firefighters, others pitch in during holidays

By PAULETTE LeBLANC pleblanc@breezenewspapers com

Whenever Pine Island Winn-Dixie store manager Dan Loughren gets a call for help, he tries to respond This post-hurricane holiday season made it especially difficult for islanders, so when Loughren got a call from local Creative Coast Preschool owner, VPK teacher and director Maria Ramirez, he did what he always does and came through for her

“Maria, from Creative Coast, got my name from the food pantry like a week before Christmas and she called me to see if I would help She said she had five families still living in tents from the hurricane Three of them were single mothers, so we mustered all the food we could get for them and a cartload of miscellaneous toys,” Loughren said

Ramirez is, in short, being crushed by the weight of her concern for others The load, she explained, is largely financial, because she was raised to do right by others and have compassion for those who are less fortunate She currently sponsors four of her students at Creative Coast, just to be certain they are being fed, educated and cared for. Without her assistance, they would not be able to attend Although Ramirez said she generally plans to