Good thoughts/prayers requested

[FrankenFretter]

I got a phone call from my sister this afternoon telling me that some good friends of ours had been in a serious fire last night. The couple and their two daughters are not in great shape, especially Joe, who's in critical care. They are like part of our family, and I met my fiancee at the same time I met them. If you have spiritual beliefs, please send prayers and/or good vibes their way, they could really use it.


Here is the link to the story in their local paper: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2012/01/01/2332595/family-of-four-suffers-serious.html


Thank you for reading this.

[poodlesrule]

I hope joe and family will pull through, very hard stuff to deal with.

[bcdon]

That's just terrible! I'm so sorry, Sean. I'll keep them in my thoughts.

[Bookkeeper's Son]

Not a happy new year for them, I'm afraid. I hope everyone pulls through OK, Sean.

[sunvalleylaw]

Mojo, warm wishes and prayers sent.

[Robert]

Awful to hear. Good thoughts and mojo is being sent.

[FrankenFretter]

Thanks, folks. I got word from a friend tonight that Jen (Joe's wife) is able to communicate with a pen and paper, and had enough spirit to flip her brother off (this is normal for Jen, so a good sign). The girls are sedated, but Summer squeezed our friend's hand, and Willow seems to be doing fairly well. She was only able to look in through the window to Joe's room, but she said he looked like a mummy.

I'm trying not to let the worry get to me too much, but I care a lot about those folks. I'm glad to hear that the girls and Jen are not too bad, but I'm really worried about Joe. If you didn't read the article, Joe was burned badly and cut up from trying to rescue his wife and daughters through their bedroom windows.

Joe is my hero.

[guitarhack]

Sorry to hear that. Prayers offered.

[R_of_G]

I'm sorry your friends have to endure this. I'll keep them in my thoughts.

[mapka]

Hey Sean finally got to read this today. So Sorry to hear about your friends. Its good to hear that the wife and kids seem to be mending. Sending nothing but good juju out to Joe. Hang in there my friend.

[FrankenFretter]

Latest update: Joe is going to make it, and the girls and Jen are improving.

Our friend Hans was staying with them for the holiday, and escaped with minor injuries. He told us that the fire started on the wall of the living room where the baseboard heater was. He was sleeping right there, and if he'd woken up 10 seconds later, he wouldn't have woken up at all.

I also learned that both of their cats were lost in the fire.

[FrankenFretter]

Joe is out of ICU, and has been downgraded to "serious". Below is a link about the firefighters, and a link to a TV news clip with video of the duplex.


http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2012/01/02/2333949/firefighter-who-led-dramatic-rescue.html?story_link=email_msg
http://bellingham.komonews.com/news/911/704943-community-rallies-around-family-four-injured-fire#.TwKyVHqKUI0.email


Thanks again for all your good thoughts. This family has a lot of support now, and it's wonderful to see that.

[oldguy]

Prayers sent. Glad to hear there's good news, FF. Hope they all heal quickly.

[Katastrophe]

Prayers sent, man.

[Brian Krashpad]

Didn't see this until today. Prayers and mojo, Sean.

[Jipes]

All my thoughts and prayers to them Frankenfretter, nothing more awful than a fire

[syo]

Sorry to hear it Sean. Prayer's sent. I hope things continue to get better for your friends.

[FrankenFretter]

Again, thank you for your kind thoughts everyone.

Not much to report right now. Jen was able to sit up in a chair yesterday. Jen and Summer (the oldest daughter, 13) will need some surgery. We were planning on driving up there this weekend, but Jen may have surgery today, so that's up in the air at the moment.

One unfortunate thing is that there is a lady in Bellingham that has proclaimed herself in charge of getting money and furniture for the family, but she is not what the family would consider a friend. There is some suspicion, because she started a bank account in her name for them, that there may be some intended fraud. There is no reason for her to have a bank account for them when people can just make a contribution to the bank that the family uses, and it will go directly to their account. Hopefully things will turn out fine, but this "friend" is telling people that they can't contribute anywhere but her bank. It makes me very angry to think that someone would take advantage of someone else's tragedy for their own benefit. I hope this is not the case here.

[Eric]

That sucks, Sean. I'll be praying for your friends. I'm glad that they're doing at least a little bit better.

[Tig]

I haven't responded to this because it makes me tear up every time I picture what happened. I'm very happy that they are all getting better and their prospects are positive. It is amazing how quickly and dramatically life changes from the normal to the unthinkable. Like the firefighter in one of the articles said, I've been to fatalities and rescues, but nothing as intense as this.

I'm hoping a better organized relief fund gets started.

[BranJLew]

keep the faith. I'll pray for them. Sorry about the tough time, man.

[FrankenFretter]

Jen had all her surgeries today. They used pig skin to patch her up. Everything seems to have gone well.

The girls are doing okay, but Willow is struggling a bit. Joe is doing a little better.

Your continued good vibes and prayers are very appreciated, thanks again! We'll be going up there next weekend, not this weekend.

One thing I haven't mentioned yet is that Joe is a fellow guitarist. That guy can put the guitar down for years, and then pick it back up again and smoke a lot of players that play regularly. He had an Applause acoustic that was lost in the fire. I'll wait to see if he's going to be able to play again (I'm pretty sure he is), and then I'll start looking for a guitar for him to replace the one he lost. It might be good therapy for him while he heals, if he's able to play.