Whenever people talk about Jennifer Lawrence’s family or her childhood, they always mention that she grew up on a “family farm in Kentucky.” For whatever reason, I guess I always thought of her childhood as hard-scrabble, that she comes from an economically disadvantaged Kentucky farming community. But yeah, probably not. I mean, the Lawrence family does have a farm, but they’ve probably already been well-off, and they run a popular summer camp out of the farm too. Except that part of the farm burned down over the holiday:
Jennifer Lawrence’s family farm, which runs a summer camp, in Kentucky was ravaged by a “horrible fire.” On Saturday, Camp Hi-Ho shared a statement on Facebook announcing the tragic news after the fire broke out late Friday night.
“It is with the heaviest of hearts that we confirm the news that we lost our barn last night in a horrible fire. We are deeply thankful that no people or animals were hurt, but we are still mourning the loss of years of hard work and memories that occurred in these walls,” the statement read. “Words cannot describe the pain we are in, but we are so incredibly grateful for the Simpsonville Fire Department and all the other firefighters who responded to our emergency. You are true heroes. We are also so grateful for the countless members of our community who have reached out to support us during this time. Your love and kindness mean the world to us,” the statement continued.
“God’s goodness and protection is evident in this situation already, and our hope remains steadfast in Him, knowing that He is with us and in control of the steps ahead,” the statement concluded. “We know Camp Hi-Ho is a special place to so many, and we plan to rebuild and repair so that we can move forward with a safe and joyful camp experience this summer.”
According to WLKY News, firefighters with the Simpsonville Fire Department got a call at around 9 p.m. local time in regards to the fire. They had assistance from the Shelby County and South Oldham fire departments, though it still took over an hour to put out the flames. Nearly 30 firefighters and half a dozen trucks were needed. “One of the issues with a rural area is always water supply. Unfortunately in areas like this, without hydrants, we have to have all our water tankered in for suppression efforts,” Simpsonville Assistant Fire Chief Bobby Cravens told WLKY. The Simpsonville Fire and Rescue and the Kentucky State Fire Marshall are currently investigating the cause of the fire.
TMZ obtained an email sent from the Oscar winner’s brother, Blaine Lawrence, who owns and directs Camp Hi-Ho, sent to parents of past campers. In the email, Blaine reportedly detailed the damage, explaining that the barn lost in the fire housed his office space, stalls for their horses, an indoor riding area for kids, an indoor rock wall, a native wildlife display, an arts and crafts area and a garage with farm equipment and a nurse station. Blaine promised to have the barn rebuilt and open by summer 2021 and asked for donations to aid in rebuilding.
Donations! I mean, it’s easy enough to say that Jennifer Lawrence could probably write a check to cover everything, but who knows how much money she’s already put into it. Plus, I would hope that everything is insured? But the insurance company will probably wait to see the findings of the investigation, and if it was arson, then no, the family won’t get any money. Anyway, it’s sad. I had no idea that Jen’s family ran a summer camp in Kentucky. They’re lucky that no person or animal was hurt.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
Sounds and looks like a wonderful place. Loked it up and saw some really nice photos. Sure hope they were able to get all the critters out 😥
No people or animals were hurt luckily!
I kind of respect that they didn’t go straight to Jennifer or assume she would cover the bill. Insurance can be tough for business and the deductible could be very high. You never know?
Arson is covered by insurance in some cases.
This. If it was arson by one of the insureds, then it isn’t covered. If it was arson by some random person and not any fault of the insured, then the insurance will still be paid.
“Words can’t describe the pain we feel?” I mean, a barn burned down. No one was hurt. They have a multimillionaire in the family.
Are you so embittered than you can’t feel the pain of someone who see his work burning ?
Whoa! That was a pretty harsh attack on me, just because I value people over “things”.
Wow, that’s cold.
@ MapleAngel
I guess rich people and/or people with rich relatives aren’t supposed to feel pain when devastating things happen to them. 🙄
That’s a life’s work and a ton of memories-I would be devastated if the barn on my family farm burned down, even though I no longer live or work there. Further, just going to a rich family members is a weak behavior-we criticize family members asking for a handout from celebrities, and now we’re knocking them for not doing that? Finally, if a camp or farm where I spent time as a kid burned down, I would absolutely be willing to donate to help them rebuild to give other kids the same experience.
TL;DR: you sound like a lot of fun at parties 🙄
My life’s work is in humanitarian aid and genocide prevention. A zillionare’s barn burning down is not a major heartbreak, and I’m shocked so many feel it is. And want to attack me so visciously when I express myself.
@Mapleangel
It wasn’t “just a barn.” We understand that you deal with really crazy stuff out there on the globe and that’s commendable. But the guy has put his whole life into this camp, many adults and kids have a lot of memories and there are a lot of records, works of art and other things of value that go way beyond just the material, so I really think you need to check yourself.
I’m not buying that I made you or anyone else feel bad for gaslighting someone’s loss. It wasn’t a “vicious” attack. Clearly you did not read and comprehend the entire article and in this case at least, you are unable to feel compassion for someone else’s personal rather than global scale loss.
If it were just a storage barn sure, but it’s part of the camp that they have probably built over many years. It’s a lot of hard work and memories in there, and a lot more hard work ahead to rebuild.
I don’t really agree with them asking for donations though, especially right now when so many people are really struggling. Insurance will surely cover most, if not all, of it, and I would hope their very wealthy family member could float them some cash in the meantime.
Sorry…..but we are all built differently. With his sister worth $160 million no way in the world do I ask for donations. Might as well do a GoFundMe page.
I would never ask for money, either. I mean, I wouldnt even ask Jennifer, but I would hope she’d help out anyway. I can’t believe the number of people who start Go fund me pages. There are a lot of people in desperate need these days, but I wouldn’t count this guy among them.
Some of those GoFundMe pages are insane. I’ve seen people asking for donations so they can go on a honeymoon ! It’s like why would anyone donate money for that? Medical costs yes, a trip to Hawaii for you and the new spouse? Nope.
Yup, @ ME and @ FHMOM, I was trying to find someone in our area that we could support during the holiday instead of the onslaught of gifts, so I looked on GoFundMe for my area and it was ridiculous!! No, I will not donate so you can go on vacation or pay for your college, pay for it like I did, or pay for football tickets, honeymoon, breast implants/cosmetic surgery, or some ridiculous reason. When did the world awake one day and think, oh people owe me!?! WTF??
Why would anyone donate money for a honeymoon you ask? Because we’ve got all the stuff we already need and don’t want more things that take up space. I’ve seen couples do Honeyfund and we’re going to have that for our own wedding instead of a gift registry. Might as well shame everyone who puts their Target and Amazon registry link out there because they don’t have to buy gifts off of that either. Don’t like it, don’t buy or donate. Easy.
@ Rose
That’s NOT the same thing. Your “Honeyfund” I’m assuming will be donations from people invited to your wedding? Instead of spending money on wedding gifts, they’ll donate the money for your honeymoon. I’m assuming you’re not on a public forum asking strangers for money so you can go on a honeymoon ? Why would a stranger who doesn’t even know you and isn’t invited to your wedding want to donate money so you can go on a honeymoon ? That’s like asking strangers to purchase gifts from your wedding registry. Why on earth would anyone do that?
This!! I find it gross that they’re asking people for donations when his sister could easily cover the cost.
It’s not her business, it’s not her job to support it.
I think it’s ok he’s asking for money even though his sister is rich. We don’t know their circumstances or their relationship or even if she has ready cash not tied up in investments. The weirdness to me is more about why he doesn’t wait till the insurance money comes through and if it wasn’t insured, why not? I can’t imagine being related to a celebrity and everyone thinking I shouldn’t fundraise for my own issues cuz “they could write a check”
Insurance could take months or even years for a payout and it sounds like they want to start rebuilding as soon as possible if they are planning to reopen next summer.
Agreed. A friend of mine came into quite a bit of money (not her wealth but still a few million) and it is unreal how many people from his extended family come to him looking for handouts. His stepmom is always bugging him to give some to others in the family who aren’t well off. It’s extremely stressful for him to fend it off, guilt-inducing and has fractured his relationships. I can’t imagine people just think you are their personal ATM just because you have more. I think it’s nice that her brother isn’t automatically assuming she will cover it.
That’s true.
I was under the impression they were on good terms and she was involved with the farm, but maybe I’m wrong. Maybe she’s already given him a ton of money for this and has said no more. Or maybe she’ll cut him a check today. Who knows. Most important thing was no one was hurt, including any animals, so hopefully they can rebuild even better than it was.
Who knows what the deductible is, or if they limited coverage to save money. Also guessing rebuilding, especially if they have to make upgrades due to code changes or want to do improvements since they have to rebuild, could be more than the payout.
Gotta tell you, I’ve known a number of people who’ve run these kind of set ups and similar horse based businesses.
Not a single one was rich, most were always on the financial edge and those that weren’t were already partially subsidized by family money, significant other, sugar daddy, trust fund, inheritance or something in the background for any capital improvements that happen. Literally every dollar is tied up in the day to day bills, animal care and infrastructure maintenance. Same with most agricultural operations.
Odds are very high that JLaw was already helping out financially, and by very high I mean 85% + likely. I’ve been around the industry for close to 40 years, I’ve never seen an exception in Canada or the US.
A bit shady, but Blaine Lawrence is asking for community donations via a fundraiser or 501(c)(3). A 501(c)(3) or a charity setting up and collecting donations would make that donation tax deductible … and then wow, an anonymous donation covers the costs to rebuild and the anonymous donor (J Law) gets a tax write-off for her brother’s summer camp.
This is my cynical tax accountant brain working.
I understand what you’re saying Dalloway but the way I look at it is people game the system all the time. Some people are excoriated for it and some people are applauded for it. Isn’t that what we’re going through as a country right now??
I just don’t think it’s a big deal if JLaw is able get a tax write-off by helping her brother. But she’ll certainly be excoriated waaay more than the tRump in office right now, and all the other scoundrels that game the system 3000% more than JLaw ever thought about doing.
I think your argument is fair. Proportionately this isn’t a big deal compared to massive injustices we face and scoundrels like Trump or billionaires like Bezos/Amazon who never pay taxes.
I’m so sorry for this, that camp sounds amazing
Most farmers in the western world are pretty well-off. There’s not much room for small farms since they can’t really compete with the big ones.
That’s too bad. But donations? Jennifer is worth $160mil. She could write a check to rebuild that. Asking for donations from folks during an economic downturn and pandemic when there is multimillionaire in the fam is worth a lot of side-eye.
Agree !
Why? No one’s forcing anyone to give money. I’m sure a lot of families who sent their kids to this camp would love to donate a bit to rebuilding it, if they are able. Maybe they don’t want to ask for so much money from her, I wouldn’t either.
There is a serious psychological benefit in assisting to rebuild something that matters to you or to your family.
I think her family is already pretty wealthy. She was born in one of the richest areas of Kentucky and her dad owned a construction company.