Pro baseball player helps Round Rock family's recovery after devastating fire

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Mendez family recently lost their first home in Round Rock to a house fire. They lost a lot of their belongings and two of their three pets in the flames. But their path to recovery has been made easier thanks to help from their community and a donation from a Washington Nationals prospect.

Travis Sykora, a Round Rock native and graduate of Round Rock High School, plays for the Fredericksburg Nationals, the Minor League, Single-A affiliate team of the Washington Nationals. He recently got a sponsorship from New Balance and said part of the deal is donating a certain amount of money to charities each year.

Sykora's dad is a firefighter, so directing that charity to fire victims was a no-brainer. He said he asked his dad if he knew anyone who could use some help, and his dad then reached out to the Round Rock Professional Firefighters Association.

"My dad's always been a firefighter, so I've always heard the stories of, you know, people who have unfortunate situations happen and they lose everything," Sykora said.

The association directed Sykora and his dad to the Mendez family. It turns out that Sykora's dad helped respond to that fire, too.

"As soon as I found out about the deal, I asked my dad, like, you know, 'who's a family that could use some help?' And he reached out to the firefighter association and they found this family, and as soon as they told me about their story with their house, I was super excited to be able to donate to them," Sykora said.

Billy Colburn, president of the association, said the community was fortunate to have someone like Sykora who's in a position to give back and help the Mendez family.

"Travis had a great opportunity to come back to the community that he grew up in. He grew up here in Round Rock, and his dad's a fireman," Colburn said. "That connection was made, and he got in contact with the association and how we could get this family over here to help them,"

"We're real fortunate to have somebody like Travis, that's from this community and is in a position where he can get back to the community, and then we have a connection with him because his dad's a fireman," Colburn said.

The Mendezes, Annie and Michael and their son Asher, said the fire was devastating because it was their first home.

"This was our first home. We've been together for 21 years, married for 17 of those 21, and then, of course, we have our boy, and it was our first home purchase together," Annie explained. "And so it was just a culmination of years and years of hard work, and you just see it literally going up in flames. And it broke me."

Despite the devastation and loss, though, the family said the support and love from the community has been tremendous.

"You lose everything in a manner of minutes," Annie said. "But you also gain a lot of things," her son Asher said.

"The silver lining of all of this is the love and kindness that we've received from all of our family and friends, but also people that we've never even met," Annie said. "You know, a neighborhood church did a meal train. Neighbors donated clothes immediately, were checking on us, bringing us food, water, whatever we needed."

Annie said she's grateful that Asher will still have a great Christmas despite everything he lost since the fire was mostly in his room. Asher said he was just grateful the ashes of his grandfather, Annie's dad, survived the fire since they were kept in his room.

Sykora said each of them were able to make lists on New Balance's website, and he got to deliver those items to them.

"A lot of shoes and clothes and just, just all those certain things, you know, that we all take for granted, but that, you know, they all lost in the fire," Sykora said. "So just to be able to give them new stuff, it means a lot. And it's a great, it's a great thing that New Balance has put on."

"The fire department's there on their worst day, and then Travis is coming out here and trying to help them get back on their feet, especially during Christmas time with the gifts," Colburn said. "And I know they're not back in their house yet, but soon will be hopefully."

The Mendez family is about eight months or so away from being able to move back in. Annie said they're going through the insurance process right now and the next step will be trying to find a contractor to do the rebuild work.

"We're just focused on the positive, one step at a time," she said. "We've been spending time together and taking care of each other, and you know that's all you can do."