MORENO VALLEY, Calif. – More than 100 American families forced to evacuate from China because of the coronavirus outbreak are being released from March Air Reserve Base in Moreno Valley on Tuesday. They have all been medically cleared.
The base has been their temporary home during a two-week quarantine. Spectrum News spoke to one man under quarantine via Skype and a non-profit organization who stepped up to help the families in a big way.
Overflowing shopping has become a daily reality for Kimmy McDaniel and her husband James since the plane carrying passengers from Wuhan landed in their backyard.
RELATED l Coronavirus Fears Cause Travel Industry Slow-Down
The Moreno Valley couple run a non-profit called “Project Strong One” serving military families past and present. But they shifted their focus to the nearly 200 people quarantined at March Air Reserve Base.
“It was a no brainer for us to automatically say we’ve got to support this… we were boots on the ground within half an hour of them landing,” said McDaniel.
They have spent $14,000 so far mostly from their own pockets buying all sorts of things from laundry pods to bananas to baby food.
The requests come directly from the people inside in a private online chat group including Matthew L. McCoy. McCoy, a theme park designer, says he could write a book just about how hard it was to get out.
“The city went under lockdown… I called the U.S. Consulate and they had already scheduled a flight and then I went online and found out the flight was happening the next day,” McCoy said.
He got what he called a golden ticket back to the U.S. and somehow got through roadblocks throughout the city to get to the airport in time. He is now staying in what used to be barracks.
“It’s just a basic room keep it clean. I’ve got a cabinet, armoire, TV, workstation, and I’ve got a window and I can see out into the courtyard with all the kids playing.”
He has more than just the basics because of Project Strong One.
“We ask for gourmet coffee, she brings her own machine out of her office. They have gone beyond trying to helps us out,” McCoy said.
The McDaniel have bent over backwards to make sure complete strangers feel at home. Though they have never meet face to face, McCoy says he now considers her a friend.
“I am going to stay in contact with for a long long long long time,” McCoy said.
“It makes me mushy and want to cry,” McDaniel said glad she is making a huge difference in the lives of so many people during a challenging time.
McDaniel spent so much time buying, picking up, and delivering things, she had had to put her full time job on hold. You can learn more about her nonprofit organization here.
The flight cost back to the U.S. was not covered. McCoy is also out of work until he can return to China. He has GoFundMe account set up.
This Gofundme.com site is not managed by Spectrum News. For more information on how the site works and the rules, visit gofundme.com/safety.