On Friday the 19th at 6:13 AM, my home, along with the homes of two other families who lived there, was destroyed. The large home had been converted into three units: my unit, my neighbor’s unit on the bottom floor, and one large family unit upstairs. A man who had been having issues with his ex-girlfriend, who lived upstairs, came to the house with a Molotov cocktail and set her car on fire. She had been terrified of him because he had slashed her tires just two weeks prior, so she had been hiding her vehicle behind the home. The night before, the man was caught removing a piece of the fence for what officials believe was his escape route. He was out of view of the security camera, but officials found the piece of fence with gasoline residue on it. It is believed he poured gasoline along the middle of the home leading up to the second floor, where the gas stove was located. He knew exactly where it was because he had lived there before. Just to the right of that wall, where the stove was located, was the bedroom where his ex-girlfriend was sleeping. That room happened to be directly above my bedroom and bathroom. After the car was set on fire, the gas stove exploded. You can hear the second explosion in one of the videos while the women outside are screaming. At the time, I had no idea the second explosion was my stove in my unit. The house is much worse on the inside than it appears from the outside, although the outside is devastating enough. There has been so much damage that it will not be rebuilt. I’m sure it will eventually be demolished, with most, if not all, of our families’ belongings still inside. Thanks to my neighbor, everyone made it out alive. Within two minutes of the car being set on fire, as you can see in the videos, he grabbed a fire extinguisher and tried to put out the vehicle. He also fought the flames that were spreading along the back of the house. After that, he began pounding as hard as he could on windows and throwing things at them to wake everyone upstairs, making sure no people or pets were left behind. The only lives I couldn’t save were my fish. I had a huge fish tank, and I lost them all. Thankfully, my dog Rio and I are safe. Since this happened, I’ve had to spend money on a motel room just to have somewhere to stay while I figure out what comes next. I’ve hardly slept because all I can think about is how I’m going to start my life over. I have yet to see the inside of my home, but I’ve been told there will probably be nothing salvageable. If the fire didn’t destroy it, the water damage will. The home has to remain boarded up until the man is tried in court and convicted. That could take weeks or even months. While the videos will certainly help, a home sitting boarded up in this summer heat and humidity with all of that water inside is going to be consumed by mold and bugs. By the time anyone is allowed back inside, there likely won’t be anything worth saving. Among losing everything else, I also lost all of my medically necessary items. Those of you who truly know me know my struggles. You know I’ve had a stem cell transplant. You know how severe my diabetes and neuropathy are. All of those supplies and necessities were lost in this fire, and I’ll be adding those essential items to my Amazon Wish List as I remember everything I need. I’m grateful and thankful to everyone who shares this post. If you can’t donate, I completely understand. Please consider sharing instead. I see so many people scroll past posts like these and continue on with their day as if it’s nothing. Maybe to you it isn’t because you’ve never gone through something like this or struggled in this way. But for someone who has lost absolutely everything, it means the world when people simply care. The home was sold under new ownership at the beginning of this year. After it sold, my rent increased by over $300 a month. It put me in the difficult position of deciding what bills I could keep paying just to keep a roof over my head. Sadly, after living in the home for many years and never imagining something like this could happen, I made the decision to cancel my renter’s insurance and even my dog’s pet insurance. Before anyone says, “Well, you should have had insurance,” I simply ask for a little decency and humanity. Please understand that I’m already living through one of the hardest moments of my life. I don’t need judgment—I need compassion. My mental health is not okay. Losing all of the things I loved and cared about in my home hurts. But losing people I thought were my friends, only to realize they may not have been, has been one of the hardest parts. If you’re afraid to reach out because you can’t help financially, please don’t be. I don’t want anyone thinking they have to send money just to check on me. Just show me that you care about me, not just the things I lost. Do I sound desperate? Well, I am. This is traumatic as hell. I’ve spent hours going through more than 36 video clips of that morning—the screaming, the crying, the fear in everyone’s voices, the chaos, and the sound of multiple gas stoves exploding so loudly your ears ring. Watching years of your life disappear in a matter of minutes is something I wouldn’t wish on anyone. People only see the charred outside of the building. They don’t see the inside: ceilings blown apart from explosions, everything soaked from the water used to fight the fire, belongings sitting there being destroyed more every single day while the home remains boarded up as this man awaits trial. You’re completely helpless. You can’t go inside. You can’t even try to see what can or can’t be saved. You don’t know if the things your loved ones left behind for you are gone forever. Those aren’t things you can replace with money. Those memories, those keepsakes, those pieces of the people you’ve lost are priceless. So please, if you care even a little bit about me, let me know. A message. A phone call. A comment. A simple “How are you doing today?” means more than you probably realize. If you’d like to help me rebuild, I’ve put together an Amazon Wish List with some of the basic things I’ll need to start over it’s linked here at the bottom of this page. If you’d rather help financially, those payment methods are linked below, and the app also allows you to send gift cards If you’re not in a position to donate, please don’t feel bad. Sharing this post can make just as much of a difference by helping it reach someone who may be able to help. To those of you who have sent messages, checked in, prayed for me, shared my posts, or simply reminded me I’m not alone, thank you. You are forever loved by me. While money and donated items absolutely help, your compassion has helped keep me calm enough to sleep a few hours at a time. You’ve reminded me that even after losing so much, I still have something familiar to hold onto—the people who genuinely care. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. 💕