Community fundraises thousands for family of late Lemon Grove City Council member

Sitivi Steve Faiai is survived by his wife of over years Lauren Holmes Faiai and his two sons Cameron and Riley The funds raised will aid the Faiai Four after the councilmember s sudden death Photo courtesy of GoFundMe The Lemon Grove locality has raised more than on GoFundMe to aid the family of Sitivi Steve Faiai s family after his sudden death last week The funds will help financially sponsorship the first-term council member s wife and two sons following Faiai s abrupt death from a heart attack last Tuesday Faiai who also went by Steve was Lindsay Holmes Faiai s sister-in-law started the fundraising event the day after the councilmember died because the family s financial burden will be heavy from Faiai s unexpected death My sister would never want to ask for help but we all know she d be the first person to create a GoFundMe for someone who needed it Holmes wrote of her sister and Faiai s wife of over years Lauren Holmes Faiai Any amount given will be an incredible assistance to the family as we give them space to grieve and process Faiai was elected to Lemon Grove City Council in November While he didn t have a background in politics Faiai declared he was inspired to become a constituents leader to serve the local children he coached Photo courtesy of GoFundMe More than neighborhood members have donated to encouragement the Faiai Four so far and the fundraising event is just a couple thousand dollars away away from its goal of An involved member of the local neighborhood Faiai coached football at Helix High School in La Mesa worked as an early-morning manager at a Sprouts grocery store and pastored at OB One Church in Ocean Beach when he wasn t at the Lemon Grove City Council His priorities reflected a deep sense of region pride and building a cleaner safer and more united Lemon Grove the city wrote in a announcement about Faiai s death Councilmember Faiai was a bridge-builder known for listening with humility and moving forward with a purpose Faiai was elected to the council in November after living in Lemon Grove for four years and in East County for multiple more While he didn t come from a background in politics he made an impact during his short-lived tenure by focusing on addressing homelessness community safety and aid for children and families