By Rachel Ravina
The Reporter
HATBORO, Pa. — The community has rallied around a Hatboro police officer and his family who lost their home in a fire over the weekend in Berks County.
An online fundraising campaign raised more than $40,000 so far. The GoFundMe page initially launched on Sunday had a $10,000 goal, but 450 donors surpassed that as of 2 p.m. Monday with $40,906 collected.
The fire broke out around 2 p.m. Saturday, and crews from the Eastern Berks Fire Department quickly responded to the home in Washington Township, Berks County. While the home was razed, Sgt. Alex Bruckner, his wife, Sarah, her mother, their children, and pet were not injured.
“Sarah and Alex and their three young children, on a beautiful Saturday afternoon at the start of summer, stood and watched helplessly, as they lost everything they owned in just minutes. It will take many months for them to rebuild their life after this devastating loss,” said Bruckner’s aunt, Amanda Karns, in a GoFundMe post.
Karns took to social media to share the harrowing tale that reportedly began with an electrical fire on the family’s deck.
“This proud, hard working family would never ask for help for themselves, but they need support,” Karns said.
Montgomery County officials also responded to the tragedy in two separate instances as they called for community members to support the family of the Hatboro law enforcement officer who’s been with the department since 2010.
“Please keep the Bruckner Family in your thoughts and prayers while they recover from this. We are so very lucky to live in a great small community where everyone helps each other and those that serve our community every day,” Hatboro officials said in a Facebook post.
Bruckner previously served in the armed forces, doing two tours in the U.S. Army in 2005 and 2007 in Iraq, according to Hatboro Police Chief Mark Ruegg, who in a post on the department’s Crime Watch website stressed the family “suffered a tragic loss” and called for additional support.
The Montgomery County Hero Fund is also soliciting donations to assist Bruckner’s family. Those interested in contributing can go to montgomerycountyherofund.org and click the “Donate Today” button. Visit gofundme.com/f/support-for-officer-alex-bruckners-family for more information on the GoFundMe.
Staff writers from The Reading Eagle contributed to this report.
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