Memorial held for woman killed in SLO RV fire: ‘We lost a really great person’
A woman who died in a RV fire at San Luis Obispo County’s Safe Parking Facility was remembered by friends in the houseless community Wednesday afternoon.
A group of about 50 friends gathered, along with county officials and service providers, to pray and honor the life of Jorji Coy-Epperly.
They set up a memorial with flowers and photos of Jorji Coy-Epperly on the grounds where about 80 to 90 people park cars and RVs.
According to a county news release, Cal Fire responded to a fire at the RV at about 6 a.m. Tuesday. The blaze killed a woman and her pet cats, but officials have not released her name, citing a pending coroner’s investigation.
But friends, some of whom tried to rescue her unsuccessfully, and a family member, identified Coy-Epperly as they mourned her death, pronouncing “Jorji” as “Georgia.”
The memorial site was set up steps away from where her charred RV had been parked. The RV has since been removed. Cal Fire still is investigating the cause of the incident.
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“Jorji was married to my brother for 25 years,” said Courtney Davis of Arroyo Grande. “She was the sweetest person who’d do anything for anybody. She was trying to hard to get herself together. And I was so happy that she’d recently reunited with her daughters when she was clearheaded.”
Davis acknowledged that Coy-Epperly struggled with addiction but was working on her sobriety to be able to spend time with her six children, ages 9 through 23.
“She was trying to get clean so she could reunite with them,” Davis told The Tribune.
Davis said that Coy-Epperly had cats and also candles in the RV and that one of the cats might have knocked over a lit candle, possibly causing the fire.
“She had been here since November,” Davis said.
Remembering Jorgi
Many of the people now staying in the Safe Parking Facility said they regularly would stop by to chat with Coy-Epperly, describing her as a kind and caring person.
One woman with bad knees said Coy-Epperly got a scooter for her to walk more easily.
Sam Guerrero said that Coy-Epperly helped her through difficult days in her life.
Together, they were working on organizing a weekly walk with women in the Safe Parking community, which Guerrero said she’ll pursue after her friend’s death.
“Whenever I had a bad day or someone else, she was right there,” Guerrero said. “She was somebody you could talk to.”
Several speakers said that Coy-Epperly was an honest person and no-nonsense.
“You couldn’t bulls--- her,” said Nicholas Watson. “If you did, you’d walk away with your tail between your legs.”
Benjamin Kincaid, who suggested changing the parking site’s name from Kansas Avenue to “Jorgi Avenue” or “Jorji’s Campground,” said he’d stop by regular to have deep conversations with her.
She was someone “we all trusted and cared about,” Kincaid said.
“She was a loving friend, and this is absolutely heartbreaking,” Kincaid said. “We lost a really great person. I’m going to miss her so much.”
Amanda “Amy” Watson said Jorji and she became close friends after bonding as mothers, adding she “helped me to stay focused.”
“All she ever talked about was her kids,” Watson said. “She was taking steps to reunite with them.”
This story was originally published February 16, 2022 at 7:13 PM.
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