Family House Fire Relief

On December 12th, the Edmonds family home in Haynesville, Louisiana was tragically destroyed by a fire. The long-term residents were father and son, Ron Jr. and Noah Edmonds, and the home was frequently visited by out-of-state daughter and son-in-law, Alex and Chris. The home, along with every possession in it, has been burned to ash or damaged beyond repair.  It has been determined that insurance will not cover the value of what was lost. Instead of writing out an endless list of what has perished…reflect on your own family homes and ask yourselves what is the value of its contents? For many things…the answer would be “priceless.” With that in mind, please consider giving to this family in such a grievous time of need.

At the time of the fire, Noah, age 21, was leaving work in Minden and headed to his evening college classes when he received the call that his childhood home and everything he owned was in flames. Ron Jr., age 59, was napping in his bedroom before his graveyard shift at the Homer Hospital radiology department when he was awakened by a “knock” in his dreams. He smelled smoke and began to investigate. Walking down the hall, he saw his front porch in flames and quickly spreading in the living room, consuming the display of decades of precious family photos and heading towards all of the recently wrapped Christmas presents. Ron Jr. frantically dressed and called 911. In the hurried process, he tripped, spraining his ankle and hitting his head, leaving him unconscious for several minutes. After regaining consciousness, Ron Jr. saw that the fire had spread to most of the home and had just enough time to make it to safety before the fire department arrived. After several hours of battling the fire, it was finally extinguished, but the destruction of the flames, smoke, and water damage left the home in total ruin.

For the Edmonds family, it has been a most difficult couple of years after nearly losing Ron Jr. on two different occasions due to cancer, surgical complications, and other various health problems. Ron Jr.’s reality has been a long-suffering cycle of diagnosis, surgery, and medication, one after another. In 2022, he was diagnosed with Stage 4 renal failure and forced to begin a lifetime of dialysis treatments three days a week. Due to health conditions, expenses have been rising as he adjusts to a challenging lifestyle, making this recent loss of thousands of dollars in medications and necessary medical equipment a more detrimental impact.

Despite Ron’s most painful days and even now, after losing everything, he remains determined and committed to a job that he loves and often works extra shifts for, revealing a kind of warrior strength that continues to inspire. In the wake of this tragedy, many Homer residents have begun to express sympathies and outpour with stories of Ron’s generosity, lifelong friendship with their families, and loyalty to his community.

As the oldest daughter, I am sharing a more personal story to convey the magnitude that this house fire has had spiritually, emotionally, and financially on us. We are broken-hearted and overwhelmed in processing this significant loss and to find that insurance will not be able to cover all that has perished. Friends, family, churches, prayer warriors, encouragers, generous donors…we need you. This has been the hardest year of my dad’s life, and it was most certainly a Christmas we will never forget. My dad is fighting more than ever to keep his spirits up, and it is my hope that a loving display of community in action will partner with me to help him!

As we sort through the rubble and work to restore a family home, I am asking that you please consider sharing this post and contributing to this cause. There is no donation too small when rebuilding from the ground up. Whatever you are led to do or to give will be received with abundant gratitude and appreciation. Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and charitable considerations in giving to our house fire relief fund. Your efforts, both big and small, have a huge impact on my family during this time of grief and need.

God Bless,

Alex Edmonds-Baker