Throughout January, all of the Donations added to ticket sales go directly to the Trujillo Family. You can also donate directly to their GoFundMe page.
Dazzle and the Colorado Jazz Family are fundraising on behalf of the Trujillo Family. The Trujillos are closely tied personally and professionally to Jazz in our community. Mi Vida Strings is their family business that makes and repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. There have already been a few professional collaborations at Dazzle’s new venue. Now, it’s time for a personal collaboration: fundraising for the Trujillos as they rebuild their home.
Directly from the Dad, Eric Trujillo’s Facebook post:
Hello dear family and friends. We had a house fire yesterday. Everyone is safe. All pets are safe. We have temp lodging. We are thanking God for His protection and provision!!! Our shop Mi Vida Strings is open for business and we plan to proceed as normal. Our kids are finishing up this semester of school as we speak. We have a dear friend who is insisting on a GoFundMe on our behalf. But I wanted you all to hear it from us first. We have called as many as we can, so we apologize if you didn’t hear from us personally, please know that if we could reach everyone individually we would. But this is our best way to communicate with as many people at once. Pray for us. And rejoice with us. And know that we are trusting God with every detail of our lives. And He is faithful.
(I snapped a couple of photos yesterday morning of our tree ornaments. Good news is, I know who made them, and they can be remade. )
Friends, please help by giving $10 – $1,000. Every little bit counts and together we can make a big difference.
A bit about the Trujillo’s:
Eric- A luthier, who is a craftsperson who builds and repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. A business owner, together with his wife of many years, of Mi Vida Strings
Michele- Just celebrated her 21st birthday just 5 days ago. Her Etsy shop, Michele’sMiniMercado is still open, but the majority of the inventory and supplies are lost. Most items are handcrafted by Michele. Keep an eye on the shop for updates.
Both Eric and Michele are alumni of MSU.
Daniel- Already an accomplished vibraphonist currently attends Standley Lake HS. He launched his vibes debut earlier this year at Dazzle and has plans to attend college in the fall of ‘24. He’s also a longtime CCJA student.
About Maiya- Born on April 30th, International Jazz Day! Currently a sophomore at MSU in Denver, she is an artist in many ways: Art Major, violinist and bassist.
About Lanae- An 8th grader and budding trumpet player and upright bassist. She is still fundraising for her Costa Rica trip….coming up in May 2024! She’s going with her Spanish class on their traditional 8th-grade trip. Maiya participated in this, Daniel was set to go but COVID, and now it’s Lanae’s turn. Those fundraising links are expired, but you can designate fund for her trip with comments in the GoFundMe campaign.
Funds will be used at the family’s discretion. It is undetermined if the fire is a complete loss or a near complete loss. Either way, the Trujillo’s need to replace everything they did not have with them.
Other Ways to Support
If you would like to give cash or gift cards instead, there are collection locations that will be updated as necessary:
Mi Vida Strings
3702 W 72nd Ave
Westminster, CO 80030
Attention – Michelle and Eric Trujillo
1080 14th Street
Denver, CO 80202
Attention – Kelley Dawkins or Matt Ruff
2900 Welton St
Denver, CO 80205
Attention – Tina Cartagena
200 E South Boulder Rd
Lafayette, CO 80026
Or
0r 1655 Saratoga Drive
Lafayette, CO 80026
Attention – Clare Church and Pete Lewis
Updates (7):
1/21/24: From Michele Trujillo
The out of pocket expenses are starting to be revealed as we peel back the layers of insurance policy limits. We have some close friends that have volunteered to help us thru the insurance process. In the meantime, we are getting settled in our temp rental home. The T5 plus all 3 pets are under one roof and for that we are so grateful. We just passed the one month mark of the house fire. The first few weeks were a mixed bag of shock, denial, love and help. Last week was tough with insurance limits news AND we had a theft from our home garage. The process of reporting this to law enforcement, insurance and insurance vendors became its own problem. Here’s the deal though. “We ain’t goin’ out like that!” The Lifter of our heads has lifted them once again and we were renewed spiritually, physically and emotionally this weekend. We continue to be humbled by those that are giving and reaching out. And once again want to say thank you from the bottom of our hearts! (Pic was a gift today from Judy Fredericksen. Circa 2005. Mercury Cafe. Eric, Michele and Maiya.)
1/10/24: From Michele Trujillo
Update: we are out of the hotel and in our rental home. I found this quilt at Goodwill. Best or worst find ever? We own several beautiful quilts thanks to Eric’s mom.(they are in abatement jail right now.) So I spotted this one, and first thought “all that hard work and it’s just sitting at goodwill? I have to buy it! And appreciate it! Plus look at all the music material.” Take home, wash, dry, fully unfold….boom I see people in the middle. Then I see foo fighters and 2008. Hysterical laughs erupt. Kids are going crazy. Maiya texts a friend….he says those are your “Foo FIRE-Fighters” guardians of the new home!!! Humor. There’s nothing like it. And now we are creating endless lore about the subjects.
1/3/24: From Michele Trujillo
What a generous offer from Dazzle for those that have donated to our fundraiser! We are overwhelmed (in a good way) with all the love and kindness that has been shown to us. And for all the precious generosity of your hard earned money, we are truly humbled and grateful. We will move from the hotel to a rental this weekend. We will be there until our home is livable again. And we will be there thru Daniel’s final semester of High school. And Lanae’s final semester of 8th grade. 2024 was already shaping up with many family events, and now the rebuilding of our home. One day at a time, one step at a time…holding to God’s unchanging hand. Thank you all so much!♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
1/2/24: Update from Dazzle
As a thank you to everyone who has donated or donates before Jan. 6 at 10am, you get a complimentary pair of tickets to Moon.unit at Dazzle on Jan. 6 at 6pm, doors open at 5pm.
Email [email redacted] to have your name put on the guest list.
12/28/23: Update from Eric & Michele Trujillo
From Eric and Michele – we are overwhelmed with gratitude for each and every person who has reached out in compassion to help our situation! The generosity of our community has uplifted us, carried us, and surrounded us. It reminds me of a song called “Lacking Nothing” that was sung in our church, based on Psalms 34. Showers of blessings and good things have been in steady supply since the fire. And we are so thankful. We are taking everything one day at a time, and trying to stay on top of all the to-do’s. The kids are on Christmas break, which has been a mercy, as we can be together as a family and support each other. We are in temp housing and will be for quite some time. All our immediate needs are being met, but we are in this for the long haul, and we know many of you are in the “long haul” camp with us. And that gives us so much strength. God bless each and everyone of you. Every gesture, no matter how small, has made a difference! Thank you from the bottom of our heart and soul.
12/27/23: Update from Dazzle
We are so grateful to both CBS & Fox who ran stories on the Trujillo family’s loss over the last week.
Fox: https://kdvr.com/news/local/denver-violin-maker-loses-home-in-christmas-week-fire/
1/27/23: Update from Dazzle
Thank you so much for getting us close enough to $25,000 that we doubled the goal to $50,000!
Generally, it takes 1.5-2 years for families to rebuild and move back into severely damaged homes and there are lots of cash expenditures necessary to get through that time. From basic necessities like underwear (and all of the clothes that cover it) to down payments / deposits for tradespeople to rebuild the home, there are many expenses to come.
Please continue to share this GoFundMe far and wide.
