Boys & Girls Homes president dies in house fire, NC officials say. ‘A horrible loss’
The president of the Boys & Girls Homes of North Carolina died in a fire at his home, officials told news outlets.
The fire broke out around 1 a.m. Saturday, July 16, at the home on Canal Cove Road in Lake Waccamaw, WECT reported. Firefighters were told someone was possibly inside and arrived to find “heavy smoke and flames” at the front of the home, Lake Waccamaw Fire and Rescue Chief Brandy Nance told The News Reporter.
“After the flames were extinguished, units and crews were able to go inside and find one fatality, that being a Mr. Ricky Creech of Lake Waccamaw, the president of the Boys and Girls Home,” Nance said, according to WECT.
Two dogs that worked at the Boys & Girls Homes also died in the fire, according to The News Reporter.
Officials told WECT that the fire is under investigation but that they don’t suspect foul play. No other information about the blaze had been released as of Sunday, July 17.
The Boys & Girls Homes of North Carolina provides “residential and community-based services” to children who have been abused or neglected, according to its Facebook page.
The nonprofit was established in 1954 and is “dedicated to providing a continuum of care to meet the physical, emotional, mental, behavioral, social, educational and spiritual needs of children, youth and families in distress or at-risk,” its website says.
Creech became president and CEO in October 2020, Columbus County News reported.
Dave Wyatt, the nonprofit’s board of trustees chairman, said in a July 16 news release naming an acting president and CEO that Creech’s “fearless leadership and passion for the youth and families in our care will be sorely missed.”
“We keep his family in our prayers,” Wyatt said. ”We know that the children served by BGHNC were his priority and he would want the work to continue.”
Creech had a wife and three daughters, according to his biography on the nonprofit’s website.
“My heart breaks at the loss of Ricky Creech,” one person commented on a Facebook post from the nonprofit. “Prayers for his family, friends, the staff and residents of BGHNC! A tragic loss!”
The Paws4People foundation, which trains assistance dogs, said in a Facebook post that the two dogs killed were its facility dogs Zara and Kiawah. Creech was their handler.
“Our thoughts are with the entirety of the Boys and Girls Home of North Carolina,” the organization wrote. “As we process this tragedy, we ask that you please keep our staff, trainers, and volunteers in your thoughts and prayers, as many people played a part of preparing ZARA and KIAWAH for their important work.”
People commented on the organization’s post offering condolences.
“Praying for everyone involved,” one person wrote. “What a horrible loss.”
“This news truly hurts the heart… Sending love and light to you all and the families touched by this terrible incident,” another person wrote.
Lake Waccamaw is in southeastern North Carolina, about 130 miles from Raleigh.
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