A longtime Blue River resident who became a symbol of resilience and determination after the Holiday Farm Fire of 2020 died on Halloween morning.
Melanie Stanley lost Myers General Store & Liquor Shop in the Labor Day wildfire, a business she’d taken over in 2003. Six years after the Holiday Farm Fire, Stanley was still grappling with permitting, contracting and supply chain issues, and numerous other setbacks. Her last Facebook post, on Oct. 26, celebrated railings for the two upper floor apartments of her rebuilt store, intended for affordable housing.
While no official cause of death has been released, Stanley wrote in a Sept. 15 GoFundMe post that she suffered a heart attack on Aug. 31, which required her to be airlifted and subjected to several more trips to the ER via ambulance. The fundraising effort was meant to help cover medical and transportation expenses.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your kindness, prayers, and support during the scariest chapter of my life,” wrote Stanley.
Another upheaval came earlier this year when state officials filed suit against Marc Brooks of Cascades Relief Team, accusing him of defrauding donors of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Stanley and others who worked for Brooks said they felt betrayed and disgusted.
While Stanley grumbled about setbacks, she told KLCC repeatedly that rebuilding her store was really more about bringing Blue River locals back together.
“It would be nice to have that community family feel again, where everybody knows each other, you take care of each other,” Stanley said in a June 2024 interview. “That’s the way that it’s always been.”
One of Stanley’s more recent attempts to fund the completion of the store was a fundraiser where donors could purchase paving stones that would bear their names, and be installed in the store’s walkways.
Stanley’s niece, Samantha Winningham, remembers her aunt as someone special and irreplaceable.
“She was making sure that Blue River did not fall off the map and was not forgotten,” she told KLCC on Monday. “Just rooted for everything to come back. She was the glue of the community, she was the glue of our family.”
Winningham added that surviving relatives are determined more than ever to finish construction of the Myers General Store in honor of her late aunt.
“We're gonna see it through, and we are gonna finish it for her,” said Winningham. “What happens after that, who knows? But we are going to finish that damn thing.”
The general store and liquor shop was a regular community gathering spot before it was destroyed in September 2020. Stanley said she was often referred to as the “unofficial mayor” given her connection to local activities and events.
Winningham said a close family friend, Christiana Rainbow Plews, told her that Stanley would be confident in her ability to carry on. And that her aunt had a great sense of humor that helped her and others get through the hardship caused by the Holiday Farm Fire.
“We always said if we don't laugh, we'll cry,” she added. “Or you know, go to jail.”
A meal train has been set up for Stanley’s family. Plans for a service are still pending.
Copyright 2026, KLCC News.
