Folks in Old Town Tustin are a pretty tight group and always willing to help out a worthy cause. This time, the cause is in our own back yard.

Way back in December of 2011, Old Town very nearly lost one of its treasured buildings to fire. The Jabberwocky, located on El Camino Real just south of Main St., Nearly burned to the ground. Only the facade was left largely intact. This building was built around 1885 and was reportedly the town doctor’s office. When it caught fire, it was a quaint dress shop called the Vintage Lady. We first wrote about the Jabberwocky in 2013

The owner was determined to save what they could of this piece of history. More than the allowable amount of the building was destroyed so the city required any new construction to be built to code. Local historic architect, Nathan Menard, was charged with marrying the old facade with the new building. It took awhile for construction to begin but the end result has been worth their effort. The facade has been saved and restored, and the new building is as safe as any in the city.

But, it came at a cost.

Even though insurance paid for the bulk of the construction, the owner still had to pony up some money of their own for ancillary costs. The Tustin Preservation Conservancy has stepped in to help.

The Conservancy, which is largely charged with helping to maintain the old town atmosphere of our historic district, has opened a GoFundMe campaign to solicit donations to the cause.  Spokesperson Linda Jenning told us:

The Tustin Preservation Conservancy has opened a campaign on the Go Fund Me web site to raise funds to help finish the Jabberwocky building. As you may remember, it was partially destroyed by fire several years ago. The owner chose not to demolish but rebuild the damaged rear of the building and restore the beautiful Victorian facade.

Go to www.gofundme.com/n2riac  and look for ” Restoring the  Jabberwocky” to visit the campaign site and learn more. Any donation will be appreciated. The Conservancy will pay all fees so your entire donation will go to the fund and be tax deductible.

Yes, you heard it right. a hundred percent of all funds donated to the Jabberwocky through this campaign will go to the restoration. Tustin Preservation Conservancy will pay all fees associated with the campaign.

If you love Old Town as much as we do, we hope you will donate a few dollars to the cause. Any amount is the right amount and will certainly be appreciated.