Jeff Bird is a movin’ man with strong arms and a heart of gold, according to a group of mobile home owners who say they’re being forced from a Shawnigan Lake park.

The owner of Island Moving said he heard the story about residents of 12 mobile homes being forced to vacate Bellendean Mobile Home Park. Bird has offered to move one or all to any area in the Cowichan Valley — for free. “I’ve been a resident of Shawnigan Lake for many years and am feeling disgusted by what is happening,” he said. “This is a devastating blow to the community and the families who have invested their life savings and now stand to lose their homes.”

“I would really like to help out, so I’m extending an offer to these mobile home residents for my company to move their belongings at no charge if they’re moving within the Valley.” Bird said he knows some of the residents in the park and that prompted the generous offer. “What an awful thing to face,” he said, adding many at the park will still have a mortgage and no place to live.” “I feel bad for these people, some who seem to be down and out — how can they possibly afford to go somewhere else?”

That’s a question being asked by many in the park who said they think the landlord wants to get rid of people from the park in order to build on the land. All residents were given 12 months notice to move in February from the property which is already zoned as residential. “That tells me (the owner) wants to build a house or subdivide the property for condos or something,” said Eula Sagaskie, a 10-year resident of the park who shares a home with her cancer-stricken hubby, Peter. The landowner, Sylvan Carle, could not be reached for comment Thursday. He is within his rights to give the eviction notices, but according to a law that’s been in place since 2006 he must also pay each homeowner the equivalent of 12 months pad rentals. Residents say they have not received that yet. They have hired a lawyer and said they’re hoping he can arrange to have the rent monies put into a trust until that matter can be resolved. Sagaskie, who still owes $50,000 on the couple’s double-wide, said it would cost her about $20,000 to move the trailer. That’s money most of the people in the park simply don’t have.

Meanwhile, while the cost of moving her home remains a problem, Sagaskie is beaming at Bird’s offer to move its contents. “I really didn’t know people like him existed anymore,” she said. “He’s the light we were looking for.” Bird said he only has one request, and that’s to ask people in the trailer park to have their stuff packed and ready to go when he and his men arrive.