Gary & Paula's House

As many of you already know, Gary & Paula lost their home and most of their belongings to a fire last weekend. I can't even begin to describe what they have been through since, nor would I feel comfortable speaking for them. I know they are devastated, but overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and generosity from the community and from their friends and family. I'm going to post a few pictures of the damage. They have a long road ahead of them, but we are all so very thankful they are ok. The girls are both so strong and Paula told me the other day that Kelly's attitude was amazing. "It's just stuff," she said. (The picture above was taken from the left side of the house, facing what used to be the garage.)

This was the window to Laura's room.

This was the family room. The plywood to the right is covering what was a door to the garage.

This is the entry to the house.

The family room again, on the left is the hallway up to the kitchen.

The dumpster, full of items that could not be saved.

This was Laura's room.

The microwave. (Eric was very intrigued by this...)

This is a view from the living room, down toward the entry. There is water damage, and smoke damage, but the structure seems ok. They will be tearing down the drywall. And from what I understand, the contractor will then take over from there to begin rebuilding.

If you are on Facebook, please feel free to join the group "Helping the Haydens", if you haven't yet. You can find the link from either mine or Eric's page. Paula's friend Jennifer started the group, and has been updating it several times a day. I know she's been a huge support for Paula and we're all thankful for her posting updates of the process and for being there for Gary, Paula and the girls.

If you would like to see more pictures, send me an email, I will forward more to you. I didn't want to post too many.