Update: Life After the Fire

As many of you know, the Lyon family experienced a devastating house fire on June 19th. In just over an hour, their home and nearly everything in it was lost. Even more heartbreaking, their beloved pets, one dog and two cats, tragically did not survive. The fire, which started in an upstairs bedroom due to an AirWick plug-in, tore through the home with shocking speed, leaving behind devastation and heartbreak.

Since that day, the family has been doing their best to pick up the pieces and move forward. Insurance adjusters have been on-site assessing the damage, and while fire reports confirm the structure is severely compromised, it’s still unclear whether the house will be torn down and replaced or rebuilt in some way. As you can imagine, this uncertainty makes it nearly impossible for the family to plan ahead.

In the meantime, they are being moved from one short-term AirBNB to another, which is a stressful and unstable situation, especially after such trauma. They’re doing their best to stay hopeful and strong, but the road ahead remains long and uncertain.

Your generosity in the early days after the fire has been nothing short of amazing, and the family is deeply grateful. But as the immediate shock fades and attention shifts, donations have slowed, even as the need continues.

They’ve lost not just their home and belongings, but their sense of stability and safety. Right now, they need ongoing support, whether it’s financial help, sharing this page, or simply keeping them in your thoughts and prayers.

Every donation brings them closer to rebuilding their lives, and every share spreads awareness of their continued need. Thank you for standing with them during this unimaginable time. Let’s remind them that they are not alone.

With love and gratitude,

Amy Davis

ORIGINAL POST -

On what started as an ordinary day, our family’s world was turned upside down.

A sudden electrical fire, suspected to have started from a Glade Plug-In device, erupted in our young son David’s bedroom. David was playing at the time. He saw the flames first—and screamed. That scream likely saved all of our lives.

Within seconds, black smoke poured through the second floor. Our home’s smoke detectors blared, waking our roommate Zsuzsi—who had just come off a long night shift. Nickole, our young mother, grabbed a fire extinguisher and tried to fight the flames, but the fire spread too fast. The air was thick and unbreathable. It became clear: we had to escape.

But not everyone made it.

Our beloved pets—part of our family—hid in fear and couldn’t be rescued in time. Xerxes and Lucky, our sweet beloved cats, hid in fear and we could not get to them. Nickole tried to reach our dog, Jasmine, but Jasmine refused to leave her hiding spot. In that impossible moment, Nickole had to choose between risking her life further or protecting her newborn baby, Nickolas.

She chose her child.

Nickole, baby Nickolas, little David, and Zsuzsi all made it out alive. Moments later, flames consumed what we had spent years building.

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What We Lost

The fire tore through everything:

• Our bedrooms, memories, and belongings—all gone.

• Ceilings collapsed. Walls are burned through.

• Soot, ash, and insulation cover every surface.

• The roof is charred and open to the sky.

• What wasn’t destroyed by fire was ruined by water and smoke.

We have no home to return to.

You can see the destruction in the photos below. The images show the room where it started. David’s dresser, his books, the melted fan near the window, the hallway we used to walk through—now just blackened beams and ash.

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How You Can Help

We are asking for your help to:

• Secure temporary shelter for our family

• Replace basic necessities: clothing, food, and baby items

• Begin the long process of recovery and rebuilding

We have lost not just possessions, but comfort, safety, and a sense of normalcy.

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Why Every Dollar Matters

Your support, whether large or small, makes a real difference. If you can’t give, sharing this campaign helps more than you know.

We are so grateful that we’re all alive—but now we must start from nothing.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for caring. And thank you for standing with us in this painful moment.

— With love,

Nickole, Nickolas, David, and Zsuzsi