In the early hours of Friday, September 19th, the Kennedy-McCarthy family was startled awake by the sounds of smoke alarms and discovered their hallway to be filled with smoke. In what I'm sure was a blur of confusion and fear for the safety of their family, Matt and Julie raced to get their children, Maddi and Chip, out of harm's way. After also making sure that neighbors were alerted to the fire and able to exit the building, Matt reentered their smoke-filled home in an attempt to locate their beloved cats, Bill and Ted, before rejoining his family outside. While their pets were unable to escape - a fact that they have asked not to be mentioned to Maddi and Chip - everyone in the building was able to get out quickly and firefighters were able to put out the fire within 15 minutes. It's a miracle and a blessing that they awoke in time to get everyone out.

After such a terrifying ordeal, they are beyond grateful to have their health and that they are together. While family and friends are rallying to support them, this beautiful family is now forced to rebuild from scratch - mere weeks before they are due to have twins!

Whether or not you know the Kennedy-McCarthy family, chances are they'd give you the shirts off their backs. They've always been among the first to help my own family during unexpected hardship and, though the circumstances are devastating, I'm eager to help them get back to some semblance of normalcy.

If you are able to assist financially, no matter the amount, know that Matt, Julie, Maddi, and Chip will forever be appreciative of your help. Please consider taking a moment to share this page on your socials so we can spread the word and work together to lessen the stress this growing family is experiencing.