Taylor's House Fire - Recovery & Rebuild

Friends & Family of sweet Taylor Delph,

The last couple years have been really difficult for both my partner, Taylor and myself. We are writing to our friends and family who would be willing and are able to contribute to help ease the pain of the enormous catastrophe the universe threw at us, Taylor’s House Fire.

On January 2, 2023, Taylor called me late in the evening to tell me the Fire Department was on their way after he encountered some smoke in the attic; and asked if I could bring him a pair of shoes and jacket from my place. I jumped in the car immediately and as I drove from the Highlands around the Boeing airport in Renton, I saw a house on the hill in flames. Taylor and I stood there together that night for hours as the Fire Department sawed holes into his roof and dumped hundreds of thousands of gallons of water into the attic space which heavily seeped its way all throughout the house.

We are so grateful Taylor is safe. And that night we were grateful for Insurance, a second place for shelter, and one another’s love and safety. We knew the whole process that was to come after would suck, but could not have anticipated what it would really entail, and how much time and energy and money it would burden us with. Not only did Taylor lose his home and all of his belongings, but he also had to take on the job and set of responsibilities of “Project Manager” for building back a home; all within the same 2 months of starting a new job in a new field for him. This was new territory for us and within a few weeks, we were informed his house was a total loss - meaning the entirety of the home would need to be gutted and completely redone.

We have learned that working with Insurance, mitigation companies, and contractors is extremely taxing and time consuming. After 18 months of waiting, learning, and fighting it has come to the result that we will need to pay at least $100,000 out of pocket just to get Taylor’s home back to a livable state. Our contractor has been continuously reminding us that even with that, we are needing to be “pinching pennies” on the entire rebuild. We don’t know all what that will look like yet, but we know it will be constricting and that we will take what we can get.

For those of you who know Taylor, you know he has trust in the authenticity and kindness of people, and approaches life through a non-violent posture. It has been brutal to learn that this is not how our systems work, and certainly insurance companies are not trying to “be a good neighbor”. We are at a point now where we need to humbly reach out to our community, share our story, and begrudgingly say “We need some more help.”

We are hoping to raise $30,000 through the generosity of family and friends to offset some of the many expenses that are bringing us stress and dread on a daily basis. All of what is raised will go to Taylor’s house rebuild in Renton. Everyone has been so kind and gracious throughout this process already so please know that has not gone unnoticed. We love you all, thank you for taking the time to read some of our story, and for any contribution you can comfortably make - deepest gratitudes!

Also, please reach out if anything similar happens to your home. We’ve learned a lot and are willing to share our experience to help ease some of the hardships that come with losing a home when the system is already not in your favor.

Thank you again,

<3

Kalee & Taylor