On Tuesday, April 12th, we held a giant fundraiser at two Fresh Brothers locations (Westlake & Calabasas) benefiting the Kaplon family.
On March 17th, Brian Kaplon, a young father and husband, was shot and killed by a friend. Brian’s wife, Kristi, is a mom to two and half year-old daughter, Kloe. She is also expecting twins in May. One of the most difficult parts of this story to digest is the fact that the Kaplon’s had no life insurance. Brian had applied for it, but he was killed before the application could be fully processed.
My friend, Jen Levinson, is Kristi’s cousin and is one of her dear friends. (Jen is mom to five kids – four of those are twins!) I learned about what happened to the Kaplan family through Jen. I could not help but be sickened, saddened and concerned about Kristi, Kloe and the babies. As a mother of twins, I could not fathom enduring parenthood to baby twins without a spouse. I had a tough time. I’m not sure who doesn’t when you have two babies at once! Jen approached us about doing a fundraiser for the Kaplon’s and we immediately said yes.
It was a beautiful day. Both stores were insanely busy, but it was well worth the extra effort. Our staff kicked it into high gear and worked their butts off to make sure the day went smoothly.
I didn’t take any pictures, it didn’t seem right. But Kristi and Kloe were both there. People were dining outside on long communal tables. There was a lot of love and laughter surrounding Kristi and Kloe. KCBS and KCAL came out to talk with Kristi. Hopefully the additional media coverage helped channel extra donations for the family.
We raised $2500 for the Kaplon family. We donated 20% back of all sales from both locations that day. I am so thrilled that we were able to do this for this young family who is struggling to stay afloat during this difficult time.
As a business owner, as a mother, as a wife, I’m proud that we were able to bring our community together to help this mom out. Thank you to all who helped us make this happen!
If you would like to make a contribution on behalf of the Kaplon family, please click on this link: https://sites.google.com/site/kristikaplon/home?pli=1
