GOOD BAD NEWS

My son lost his home and everything in it this morning in a electrical house fire. He got a way with his life (the good news) and a pair of boxers and white t-shirt. His girl friend also has her life (also good news) and pajamas. Otherwise they've lost everything: home, furniture, clothes, purses, computer ... and have NO insurance!!!!! Kenneth's great loss was his loss of memories...He had the flag that was draped over his great uncle's (and namesake), Uncle Kenneth, casket, his grandmother's ashes and a painting she's done, and also a pillow made from shirts from his other grandmother after her death. In addition, there were many other momentos. Everything else can be replaced (eventually), but these things are irreplaceable. I AM SO HAPPY THAT THEY ARE ALIVE, but still am crying and upset. Worse yet, I am eating...Eating...EATING! We have to go shopping looking for some clothes for them...at least underwear and a couple outfits. They need toiletries too. YUK!

I'm sorry about this sad news. I am praying for you & your son. Remember - everything happens for a reason. God has a plan. Where do they live? Hope better luck is headed there way!! Love, Sheri

I'm so sorry that happened to them. I know how those special family memories and momentos are so dear and irreplaceable. I will be in prayer for you and your family. I hope the Red Cross or some other agencies can help them with the other necessities of life as they deal with all they've lost. Best regards!

Sorry to hear that, but as you said, they got away with the important thing - life. Just wanted to recommend that they contact Habitat for Humanity. They may be able to help out. -- JP

Wow, that is tragic! This happened to a freind of mine near Marshall a few years ago. He and his girlfriend were living together and also did not have insurance. Here are a few thoughts... When it happened to them, K-Mart gave them some free clothing and toiletries. It sounded like this is a program that they sponsor because the fire department told them to go there. I don't know if it is exclusively done at the store in Marshall, or if they still do it or not, but I thought that was very nice. Good Will is also a good option to start rebuilding their wardrobe. A lot of people donate really nice clothing to Good Will and the prices are great. Another idea is that we did a fund raiser for them by selling Whopper meal coupons from Burger King. The deal is really good for the people buying the meals, (Less expensive than if they had just bought the same meal at Burger King and Burger King actually matched the money raised up to a certain limit. If there is a Burger King in your area, you might want to check into that. We had about 5 or 6 of his co-workers selling and we raised quite a bit of money to help them get started. We also organized a group of people to come and help clean and salvage anything we could. The second floor was mostly smoke damaged and we were able to save some things. The heat up there must have been incredible because everything upstairs that was plastic melted, even though the fire did not get up there, the light switches melted and hung like a string all the way to the floor. Another small group did a food drive to restock their cupboards. People brought bags of food and they combined it all and dropped it off on their doorstep. We thought that they might feel awkward accepting it, so we just decided not to give them any reason to feel uncomfortable around us. They never knew who had done it. Finally, one of the best things that came out of this bad situation was that a woman I work with was talking to her kids about it and they really couldn't understand how devastating it was. She asked them to imagine how they would feel if they woke up the next morning and everything they had was gone. No clothes except what they were wearing, no food, no toys, no anything. The kids came back a few mintues later with their piggy banks and asked her to take them shopping for the people who lost their home. She took them and let them pick things that they thought that the couple would need. (They did not know that she added a lot of money to their piggy bank money to pay for it.) What a life-lesson for those kids though! Your family will be in our thoughts and prayers. Everything will work out, although it may not seem hopeful at first. Take care, -Mike- P.S. You mentioned that part of your response to the shock of this has been to eat. I am an emotional eater too, so I know it is hard, but try not to let this push you down the wrong path for your health. Hang in there! You're not alone.