Last night our friend’s brand new house (it’s their first home, they just bought in November and moved into mid-December) caught on fire just after they left the home. My son and their son, are best friends. They spend so much time together that we call each other’s sons our “part time kids”. Last night they came to pick up my son so the two boys could go to YAAB (Young Adult Advisory Board) at the Library. Once they were dropped off at the library, our friend went shopping while her husband was shopping at another store. It was then they got word from neighbors that their house was on fire.

Unfortunately, all four of their beloved pets died of smoke inhalation from the fire. As you can imagine, this is most devastating to them. The animals did not suffer any injuries. They simply succumbed to the smoke.

My son is the one who called me from their cell phone. He was quite upset. He spends a lot of time with this family so they are like his family too, including their pets. He was with them when they first saw the house and was there when they said goodbye to the family pets. It was after this that he finally called me.

The house suffered major damage. J and I, along with R&D went there last night to help as soon as we got the call. It’s just awful…. basically everything in their living room and dining room was destroyed. There is smoke and soot damage throughout the entire house.

The Red Cross gave them vouchers for clothing, groceries and a hotel stay. Our friends and one of their twins stayed with their Nana, while their other son and daughter stayed at our house last night. We let the kids stay home from school today to offer companionship to their special friends. They are holding up incredibly well.

They aren’t allowed to do anything until their homeowner’s insurance people do their thing. All we could do is board up all the windows and doors the fire department had to break. (We did that last last night.) Today they saw it in daylight with one insurance guy who claimed it was a “total loss” and above what he could work on, so now they have to wait until tomorrow for two more insurance people to come do their thing. They aren’t even allowed to sift through their stuff to get what survived.

There was an article in today’s Columbian. It’s also in the local paper.

They are set as far as their immediate needs go. The outpour of support from our network of friends and their family has been overwhelming, so right now all we can do is offer our moral support and keep them in our thoughts. Especially for the kids. They are strong people and will get through this, but could still use all the positive vibes we can send them.