BONNERS FERRY — While an early morning fire on Father’s Day destroyed a nearly completed local family home, all five family members inside escaped unharmed. 

Gary Bales said the hero that morning was his 13-year-old son, Gauge, who alerted the family after realizing a fire had broken out. Just days removed from knee surgery, Gauge still managed to catch his sister Cassady’s boyfriend, Isaiah, as the pair jumped from a second-story window to escape the flames. 

“Isaiah is six-foot-four, but Gauge didn’t hesitate to sacrifice himself to do everything he could to make sure Isaiah didn’t get hurt,” Bales said. “I don't think his doctor would have approved, but thankfully he was in good enough physical shape after the surgery. He deserves recognition. It was an incredible feat for a 13-year-old boy.” 

The family’s three dogs and cat also escaped unharmed. 

Almost immediately, word of the devastating fire began to circulate on social media. On Tuesday, organizers of the 2025 Family Festival, a community worship event coordinated by several local churches, announced that proceeds from its special raffle at the June 21 celebration at the Boundary County Fairgrounds would go toward supporting the Bales family. Bales said he didn’t even find out about it until Friday. 

“We went, and it was a beautiful thing. I truly do not know how it came together. Their help came out of nowhere,” Bales said. “People we don’t know, people that have been through something similar, and people who have no idea what we’re going through, have all come together to give and help in any way, shape or form.” 

Raffle-ticket proceeds at the Family Festival — put on by Bridgeway Christain Fellowship, Covenant Bible Church, Limitless Church, Mountain Springs Church, Mt. Hall Calvary Chapel and Providence Bible Presbyterian Church — have gone toward an account at a local lumberyard to give the Bales access to materials as they rebuild their home. 

“It is an incredibly humbling feeling to know that people you may never speak to are willing to help you in a time of need,” Bales said. 

The generosity displayed by the community is one example of many over the years that sets Bonners Ferry apart from many other places, said Tom Turpin, CEO of the Kootenai River Inn and Casino. 

“There's many, many stories,” he said. “I’m blessed to have been part of this community for over 35 years.” 

The latest chapter of the story will be written June 26, when the Kootenai River Inn hosts a fundraiser dinner at The Springs restaurant at 5 p.m. Fifteen percent of the money raised will go toward the Bales family. Bales, who has been the chef at The Springs for about three years, has prepared a special limited menu in addition to the full menu, which features various flatbreads, prime rib and lots of desserts. He said the event is a way to have fun and thank everybody for their support and generosity. 

"When I approached Chef Bales the other day, he looked at me in a stone-faced manner and said, ‘Really? This is what you want to do?’ I said, ‘Yes, you’re the chef. This is your kingdom, and be prideful of your product,’” Turpin said. “A small community like Bonners, we’re so willing to help each other out. There’s a lot of diversity in this community, but also at the end of the day, when somebody needs something, people rally around it. That’s the heart of this town. It the world we live in these days, it’s uncommon to find that.” 

Countless times before, the people of Bonners Ferry have worked together to rebuild structures that burned down.  

Pat Hart, who worked 46 years with the Bonners Ferry Ranger District, recalls the grassroots effort to rebuild the West Fork fire chaser cabin that burned down in 1988. 

“The people in this community, no matter who they were or what they believed, had a feeling for this cabin, to protect what belonged to them. They were amazing,” Hart said. 

Similarly, when the St. Ann’s Catholic Church burned down in 2017, local lumberyards donated materials to help rebuild it. 

But not just in fires does the community rally together. Jaycee Atkins, Boundary County Fair manager, recalls in 2011 when Cameron Hill’s beef was reauctioned several times to raise money to treat his recent cancer diagnosis. 

“That's just one small piece. Whether it’s cancer diagnosis or homes burning down, there’s many instances where people have rallied to support one another,” Atkins said. “Community members see needs in places, and they take things into their own hands, because that’s what we do.” 

Currently, almost $2,000 in community donations have been raised for Sean Comer, of Bonners Ferry, who suffered a hemorrhagic stroke June 19 and was life-flighted to Kootenai Health in Coeur d’Alene. 

“My children and myself are devastated at the thought of losing my kids’ dad and my everything,” said Sean’s fiancée, Leslie Stiles. “So please find it in your heart to donate if at all possible, and if not, could you at least send some prayers up for healing, protection and recovery.” 

A GoFundMe for both Comer and the Bales family can be found on Facebook with a simple search. 

“It’s not on purpose or anything, but it’s easy to take for granted the family and friends you have around you,” Gary said. “It’s sad that a lot of times it takes something like this to have that shock factor to make people take a step back and realize wow, we lost our house, we lost our possessions, but we didn’t lose life. To the whole community, we love you and appreciate you. The support is a breath of fresh air. It’s something that the rest of the world should look to.”