On Friday, February 20, 2026, at around 10:40 pm, Jill Bain and Larry Wilker, their two granddaughters Haley and Hannah, Jill’s mom Barb, who was going to be watching the girls for the weekend, and their dog Max were asleep in their home.

Their home caught fire and it quickly spread from the back of the house inside. They do not yet know what caused the fire. Thankfully, their smoke detectors woke them, and they were able to get out of the house. The Troutville Fire Department was alerted at 10:41 pm and arrived to find heavy fire on the back side of the home. While the initial fire attack was beginning, the fire spread into the home.

Larry was banged up in the ordeal. While trying to get out of the house, he found himself stuck on the outside porch and had to shimmy down the pole holding it up. Once they all were safely outside their home, with only the clothing on their backs, they watched their home burn.

The house is completely destroyed.

They are fortunate and do have insurance, but they have immediate needs that are costly and will be immense. They lost absolutely everything and will need to be making a list of absolutely everything they owned. They are currently staying in a hotel and their greatest needs are monetary to replace the basics, or Target and DoorDash gift cards. Barb is able to use her address to collect any gift cards: Barb Chenault, 3692 Peakwood Dr. SW, Roanoke VA, 24012. Jill can also accept donations on Venmo at @Jill-Bain-3