It was Nov. 26, and for Tracy Lima and her family, the countdown to Christmas was officially on.
She had just ordered Christmas cards that morning. Around lunchtime that day, she received a call from her mother that no one can prepare for.
“She just said, ‘Tracy, you need to come home,” she recalled. “‘Come home right now, your house is on fire.’”
Eight days later, Tracy’s home looks like any other on the block in the southwest Calgary neighbourhood of Millrise — except snow still covers the driveway.
“I was in the house just walking around for probably about four hours just to figure out what happened… it wasn’t a good decision because I got quite sick after,” Lima recounted.
The fire torched a bathroom, closet and bedroom upstairs, rendering the home uninhabitable — and taking with it nearly all of the family’s possessions.
“Between my sister and I, we have those white paper suits and some N-95 masks and gloves. We’ve been going in just trying to salvage what we can.”
The Calgary Fire Department tells Global News they’re still working to determine a cause.
“At this point in the investigation, investigators are looking at a few potential sources that are electrical or related to electrical appliances,” a CFD spokesperson said Thursday.
Lima says investigators have honed in on one appliance in particular — a mini-fridge where she kept cosmetics.
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“He asked me for some details about it,” she said. “He got back to me right away and he said, ‘Did you know that there was a product recall on this?’”
Unbeknownst to her, the appliance had been recalled due to fire risk just months ago.
No matter the cause, the three-generation family — herself, her mother and her two children — are all living under separate roofs right now.
For now, Lima’s renting a one-bedroom basement suite nearby, grappling with being away from her children, who are staying with their father.
“The kiddos are with me 80 per cent of the time. It’s taken us many, many years and failures and successes to try to figure out what works well.“
That includes helping her son, 10-year-old William, who is on the autism spectrum.
“Knowing what’s coming next is really important for him. Transitions are very, very hard. Sometimes just leaving the house can be catastrophic for him.”
Lima says her mother and children are managing as best they can, but speaking of her own experience, she acknowledges how devastating it’s been.
“I had to set reminders in my phone to eat lunch and to eat supper. When when you have no stability, when you have no routine yourself… I don’t have children to feed,” she said.
“Moms, we have this horrible habit of putting ourselves last.”
When it comes to the holidays, Lima describes herself as “extra.”
“I start planning and making lists in summer, I start shopping in September,” she explained.
Those gifts were strategically hidden upstairs — all of them ruined by the fire.
Lima’s been trying to stretch every dollar from her tenant’s insurance policy, which won’t come close to replacing all that’s lost.
“It’s my fault. I didn’t read the fine print, I didn’t read the policy, I just clicked the boxes and submitted the things because we were desperate for somewhere to live.“
Thanks to an Amazon wish list, she says nearly all of the gifts have been replaced already.
A GoFundMe supporting the family has already raised more than $17,000.
“People have shown up from, you know, it’s been 25 years since I’ve seen them or I’ve talked to them,” Lima said. “It’s really overwhelming to see this community.”
Lima says a former co-worker of hers, who now lives in New Zealand, sends her daily affirmations using voice notes.
“I have people literally all over the world showing up in ways that they can. And it’s been beautiful.”
As a harm reduction worker, she’s used to working with people in crisis.
Going through a life-changing event herself is a different challenge.
“It’s hard to accept it, because there are humans in this world that have so much less than we do,” she said.
While she’s in unfamiliar surroundings — away from her mother and children — working with insurance companies on a daily basis and finding a new forever home for the family, she’s determined to keep the holiday spirit alive.
“It is absolute magic in our house,” she said.
“Santa is very much real, and the harder you believe, the more magic it gives.“
When she needs a moment, all she has to do is look at her right hand.
A small tattoo spells out the Nepali phrase “ke garne,” which translates to “what to do” in English.
Lima and some friends got them just recently to commemorate a trip to Nepal they took more than a decade ago.
“Everything went wrong, so we just learned to accept it and keep moving forward.”
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
