Page 24 - Senior Link Magazine Fall 2024 - Online Magazine

Coy Matthews Wildfire –
hen the wildfire came
on February 27, 2024,
WVeteran Coy Matthews
was taking a nap at his home
in Fritch, a small community
northeast of Amarillo. He had built
it with his own hands forty years
ago. Crafted to his own design,
it was his favorite place to be.
There was plenty of space for the
things he liked to do. A lifelong
bachelor, Coy had amassed a
sword collection and over 14,000
movies on tape and DVD. He also
enjoyed making miniature models
of houses.
Calling a house a home was
important to Coy. His family had
lost theirs more than fifty years
prior when faulty wiring on a
Christmas tree caused a fire. He
and his siblings were farmed out
to neighbors until they could move
into another place together. He
never forgot the experience.
After high school, Coy enlisted in
the United States Air Force. During
his years of service, he spent his
days servicing and performing
maintenance on airplanes at
American bases in the United
Kingdom. He’s proud of his service
and the work he did.
24 Lubbock Senior Link
One Man’s Story
by James M. Hamilton
Recently, Coy had
been having some
trouble taking care
of his home, so his
case manager at
the Department of
Veterans Affairs
(VA) contacted
Cornerstone
Caregiving to
help Coy a few
hours a week. Coy
was assigned a
young caregiver
named Christina Hillyer, who
was new to the business but not
new to caregiving. Christina had
helped her family--particularly
her grandfather--for a few years
and understood the patience
and attentiveness a caregiver
must have. She was hired on the
spot, and her first client was Coy
Matthews.
Christina was particularly attentive
that day as winds were blowing,
and there'd been some talk
about a wildfire. She'd not seen
anything, but a volunteer with
Meals on Wheels dropped off food
at Coy's place and told Christina
that a town some distance away
was being evacuated. Keeping
an eye out, Christina kept up
her housekeeping for Coy but
then started to smell smoke. She
stepped outside and could see how
smoky it was getting.
She ran back inside and woke
up Coy who was in a deep sleep.
Coy was not really interested in
moving, but Christina persisted
and got him up. In the moment,
Coy only grabbed his keys and
wallet and jumped into his truck
while Christina followed him in
her vehicle.
Sirens started blaring nearby.
Christina called her scheduler at
Cornerstone Caregiving to tell
her what was going on and said
she needed to leave. She and
Coy headed out in their vehicles
together but were soon separated.
Christina decided to drive to her
house in Borger, while Coy drove
into Fritch to check on a friend.
Christina didn't hear from him
again that day. Coy later drove
back towards his house, which
by then was being consumed by
the fire. He drove himself to the
VA in Amarillo where he was
immediately hospitalized.
Christina soon got a call from
the VA telling her about Coy.
He had recently made her his
emergency contact person. Even
though he was from a family of
twelve children, he had no contact
with most of his siblings, which
had included two brothers who
perished in WWII, long before Coy
was born.
Christina had become his point
of contact, and, for a young
lady of 19 years, this was a huge
responsibility, one she didn't take
lightly. The VA released Coy four
days later, and, since he had no
home, he went to a hotel. Once
again, the first person he thought
of was Christina, and he was able
to borrow a phone and let her
know where he was. When she'd
not heard from him the next day,
she had asked the police to do a
wellness check. He had fallen at
the hotel and injured himself, so
the police took him to a facility in
Amarillo for treatment.
In the meantime, Christina and
some volunteers from a local
church in Fritch started sorting