Before the morning of September 4th, 2025, no member of our family could ever imagine what it is to lose absolutely everything. Clothes, furniture, appliances, electronics, vehicles, children’s toys and old birthday and Christmas presents, pictures, heirlooms, memorabilia, and souvenirs to remember the fun times together—everything. It’s astonishing how quickly your entire life can go up in flames and leave you with nothing to show for a lifetime of work and memories.

Our family has faced difficult times, but we’ve had the security of our home and the necessities of life. Until now.

On 9/4/2025, my fiancé and the mother of our infant child was alerted by our dogs that something was wrong. She stirred and smelled smoke in the air. It was faint and smelled like a campfire. Still, she woke me, a usually heavy sleeper, and told me something was wrong; she smelled smoke and the animals were all in a frenzy. As I was looking through our bedroom window to ensure my neighbors didn’t need help and attempting to find the source of the smoke, the security camera outside alerted her phone that a fire had been detected. The camera faced the driveway and garage of our house. We sprang into action and evacuated the children—our two kids and the three we took in for family who needed help—and the pets we could get to immediately. Thankfully, they woke easily and we were able to get everyone out within seconds. She called 911 as soon as she was outside with all of the children to report the fire. As they were moving away from the house, I attempted to hold the flames at bay with the only source of water I had, our garden hose. My rock, my future wife, had the fortitude and bravery to return to the house and move the family vehicle, parked right against the blazing garage, a safe distance from the house. Once I knew I could do no more and they were safely away from the house, I reluctantly dropped the hose and joined my family.

It took roughly 40 minutes for the rural fire departments to arrive. It took only 30 minutes for our entire life to go up in flames. We lost three cats and two dogs in the fire. They were scared and refused to come out of hiding, despite our strongest efforts. They were cherished and will be missed dearly. Rest in peace, Patches, Rip, Oliver, Goldie, and Twix. They will be in our hearts forever.

Due to circumstances (I have been job hunting since the beginning of June), I have had to place necessities over any insurance premiums not required by law. As such, we unfortunately had no coverage when disaster struck.

Always one to give where I can, and never one to request a handout, I find myself having to swallow my pride and reach out to you good people. For the sake of my family’s peace and in an effort to do everything I can to return them to some form of normalcy, I am asking for help to replace some of what we lost. We can’t replace everything. Pictures and belongings of loved ones who have passed, and the five pets we lost in the fire are forever lost to us, but we can have a normal life again, one day.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you have it to help a family in a dire position, we cannot express our gratitude enough. Thank you.