SALIDA, Colo. — There's a sign in a window in Salida that speaks for the entire town.
Etched on the side of a consignment store, a thank you note to strangers for all to see conveys the town sentiment as the Decker Fire burns nearby.
"I’m just glad they can walk past this window and see this. That’s very important," said Cynthia Rose, Manager of Free the Monkey Consignment in Salida. "They really are heroes because they put their life on the line. They absolutely do put their life on the line."
Look up at the mountain and you see flames. Stare into the sky and the smoke overtakes your lungs. But within the trees, hidden from view, 800 men and women battle the blaze to keep a town of 6,000 safe.
The Decker Fire has already torched nearly 6,000 acres but firefighters are battling back. Teams from all over the country are battling this blaze.
Saturday we found out two structures were destroyed by the flames.
Some good news though, even with the fears of high winds and low humidity, the fire didn’t grow as quickly as feared. Firefighters say the day went better than feared as a Red Flag Fire Warning was issued for the area.
"It’s a very scary thing. These men are up there, there’s a lot of danger to fight a fire," said Rose. "You’re my heroes, for saving our city from a great disaster."
In this part of Colorado, ‘thank you’ is often just the beginning.
At Amica’s pizza you’ve either been impacted by the fire, or you know someone who has. When the firefighters rolled in, the pizza shop knew they would be hungry.
"This is kind of what we can do to help out so we’re going to do what we can," said Michael McGovern with Amica’s Pizza. "Right now we are probably close to 1,000 meals. Feeding all the evacuees in town. They’re able to come into the restaurant and eat for free."
One dinner for a hungry person who spent their day face to face with fire can go a long way. A thank you note, for all to see, can go just as far.