Originally published September 22, 2012 at 12:46 P.M., updated September 22, 2012 at 10:52 P.M.
Tears streamed down her face as she watched the flames consume her home.
Irreplaceable pictures, children?s clothes, toys, medication, school supplies ? in one afternoon, it was all gone.
And they were homeless. Again.
?I was just numb,? said Pamela Steward. ?I could not believe it. All we have is gone, but we have each other, so I thank God for that.?
Steward, who was granted custody of her five grandsons 3 years ago, said she has no idea how she will house the entire family, ages 3 to 15, after a fire ripped through her home in the 1000 block of Pecan Street on Saturday.
Steward said she and the boys were at a football game cheering for her grandson Sylias Montgomery, 12, when the blaze was reported at 12:18 p.m. With a healing broken knee and using a walker, Steward said she was just glad they weren?t home when the fire started.
Tom Legler, fire marshal with the Victoria Fire Department, said the blaze started in the utility room in the back of the house, but the exact cause remains under investigation. Also in the back of the house were the kids? bedrooms, Steward said.
?Oh my God,? was all Steward said she could think when she got the call.
?I thank God we were all out of that house because the oldest one and the 6-year-old wanted to stay home, and I told them they had to go support their brother,? she said.
Steward moved into the house on Pecan Street in December 2011, after Teryl and Kristi Taylor bought it for the family so they can rent to own.
Teryl Taylor said he met Steward while he was couching her grandson Quentin Jordan, now 15, a few years ago in Crossroads Youth Football League.
?It is just the grandma helping,? Taylor said. ?It was just her doing everything so we were just doing everything we could to help her.?
He was so moved by the family?s loyalty to one another that when he found out they were being evicted from their home, he said he had to do something to keep them together.
So he bought the house.
?He has helped us a lot,? Quentin said about Taylor. ?I don?t have a father figure in my life, so I treat him like my father figure.?
Quentin said their house wasn?t just a home, it was a priceless gesture from the Taylors.
?It is devastating,? he said, staring at the charred remains of the house. ?It sucks because we lost everything. We don?t have anything.?
Taylor said Steward was making payments on the house, but still owed about $12,000. The house and contents were not insured.
Linda May, emergency services specialist with the American Red Cross, said the agency is providing a three-night hotel stay and enough money for immediate needs, such as food.
Steward, however, said she doesn?t know what they will do next.
?We lost everything,? she said, still in shock. ?I have no way of preparing them for school ... Right now, I am just taking it one day at a time and praying I keep them together.?
Source: http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/news/2012/sep/22/firefighters-battle-blaze-victoria-home/
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