I'm sitting in the hotel lobby making sure I take care of myself. I have hardly had anything to eat or drink in weeks. I don't share that for sympathy, but for understanding of the sheer volume of work I've engaged in. 

So today I took time to sneak away from our room where the kids and my husband slumber, and went downstairs to enjoy the sunshine and peace of a proper breakfast. 

Life in a hotel with three neurodivergent kids has been challenging, but I have worked hard to make it as close to home as I could. And to maintain our family rhythms and routines. It hasn't been easy, but it has been worth it.

It has been worth it to see my children laugh again, to have my husband near enough for hugs, and conversation, and the crude side splitting joke or two. I love seeing how peaceful my children have become at the assurance that we're all safe and together again. Every moment of sacrifice, sleepless night, missed time with my children, and standing up to medical professionals to ensure my husband got the care and attention he needed was worth it. It still is. 

I have felt God next to me as I lovingly care for my husband's most private needs. Taking those moments to laugh the most, while discovering that the tensile strength of our marriage has only grown by the strength and hold of our Father in Heaven. 

Do I wish our family was going through this? No. But have I seen God shine brightest during this time? Yes. Sometimes I think I can only see him most clearly during these times. That statement only speaks to the glory and goodness of God, and my own selfish failings as a human and my own need to hold myself accountable in daily pursuit of Jesus.

Today we will meet with the crew leader? Of the crew that will be completing the work needed in our home. He wasn't clear on the phone if we are meeting him for further scope mapping, or if they will actually be there to do work. So we will see.

But as we continue to get through this time, day by day, hour by hour, step by step I wanted to again reiterate two certainties: we could not have gotten through this without the love and provision of our God, and the love and support of you -- our community. Thank you again so much for all of your prayers, and kindness, and generosity. 

And since I don't want to post a photo of my breakfast, I'll post the raw selfie I took the moment I saw we reached our campaign goal. And the relief I felt knowing my children would be provided for and our needs met, whatever those were, and whenever they presented themselves. I promised myself that I would document this entire journey for my husband and children to look back on. And that meant remembering to take the photos even though it makes me cringe. I wanted them to see the emotions as they popped up. It's my turn to share the rawness across my face ... in a Target changing room, looking for something that wasn't sweat clothes to cheer my husband up when I went to visit him in the hospital that day.

I pray that you are exceedingly blessed beyond measure for the ways you have loved, supported, and given of your time, energy, and resources to our family. Thank you!

Jackie

[The following post was made by my husband, Rob, as the deep scabs on his fingertips are falling off little by little, allowing him more use of his fingers. Day by day he is regaining some of his physical independence, but now that his brain and body fully recognize that he is out of imminent danger the magnitude of what happened is beginning to sink in. His memory of the accident are starting to come back, as his brain allows, and we're entering another phase of healing just as we continue to work with the restoration and insurance companies to heal our home.

His words were shared with permission. And now that I have food in the fridge, and the kids' are all secure and safe, and we're all together in one place, I am starting to exhale. My body is crashing at random times over the last two days. White-knuckling through these last two weeks has kept me in survival/flight or fight mode. And now that my body also recognizes that we're all safe and together, I'm physically coming out and my body is seeking the recovery I denied it for these last weeks. You're going to see more updates, as my time opens up. But really, it's just moments to come up for air to breathe, before being diving back into the fray of red tape, managing big emotions from our children, and continuing to fill in the caps of care for my husband until he becomes fully independent.

We have a followup with his PCP tomorrow, and he goes in to hydro at the end of the week to assess healing progress and get re-wrapped. We have begun using in-person cash donations for groceries and supplies for the hotel (replacing everything we would have needed from home that is now soot damaged ... like diapers, for example, meals in between appointments and homes and at the hotel while I was struggling with unloading the car and unpacking by myself, gas for our minivan, etc. Prayers that we can get a timeline of when we might expect to be back home. Also, prayers that Rob doesn't get any infections, as some of his gauze wraps are falling off or uncurling? I don't know the term, but like, unraveling and exposing some of his fingers. I have tried wearing gloves as I wrap some gauze we picked up at the store, but by end of day it's unraveling again. We're just playing it day by day.]

The weight of what happened hit me today and how I could have died in that explosion and my family could have lost their home. As I think about this, emotions have been a bit raw for me today, but I’ve been seeing more and more what I’ve taken for granted. 

Tonight was the first night since being back that I was able to do bed time with the kids. I started to tear up again when [our oldest son] asked me to pray for his dreams and that they can wake up on time.  

Jackie gave me a hug and told me she loves me before she ran out to the store while I put the kids to bed. How many times have I taken her for granted? She is the most amazing wife I could dream of. I take for granted that she will be back, but in truth anything could happen. 

We have a beautiful home (thanks completely to Jackie) and yet how many times have I walked in the door and taken everything for granted. We are in a hotel now while they fix it, but I heard Jackie tell the kids that Home is where we can all be together. She has an amazing ability to make any space feel like home, including our hotel room. 

I’ve taken for granted my ability to do things for myself like changing my shirt, taking a shower etc. I can’t get my hands or arms wet because of the special dressing the dr put on so I’ve been completely dependent on Jackie to do so much for me. She really is an amazing wife.  

Lastly how many times have I taken for granted Gods Love and Grace. He has shown us daily that He is with us through this incredibly hard time for my family. He has shown His love in unexpected ways, and He has provided for us when this would have been absolutely crushing. He has a plan for my family and He isn’t letting us forget that.

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭26‬:‭3‬-‭4‬

** Update ** 

[This update was posted on my private social media account on May 12th and mentions media attachments that are not shown here.]

Today the kids got to eat a nice hotel breakfast before school. They were very excited about this. Had to run to the dollar store and Walmart to pick up a few things, like diapers and wipes, TP, laundry basket and bins, 3M hooks, and random things that will make it comfortable for me ... like a broom and dustpan and a dish sponge holder and anti-fatigue mat (which we will use at home since most of the things in the kitchen need replaced anyways.) And finished unpacking and organizing the space to make it familiar for the kids. Stopped at the house for mail, and to check on things, get the kids and go grocery shopping. 

Overall it has been another busy but blessed day. Rob is gaining more mobility, and reports that his arms are "getting really itchy" which is such a good sign! He reports tender and sore areas still, but overall in low pain. 

Kids are settling in and doing okay. We had a rough night last night but hoping for a better one tonight. 

And a God moment: when I was back at our home Walmart I was chatting with my favorite Filipina cashier, and the person behind me in line overheard me. She said "you're so-n-so's neighbor, aren't you?!" And she introduced herself as their best friend, and asked how my husband and our family were doing. Later, my neighbor said that it was golf night that night and so our neighbor had to let this lady know she couldn't make it because she was keeping our kids safe. Anyways, this lady proceeds to tell me she knew about our family's accident and is a retired social worker. She asked me a bunch of questions about our needs and pointed me to the right direction of how I can get help with all this red tape. She said she has worked with many displaced families. And said after I tried the avenues she suggested to let our neighbor know if we aren't getting enough help, and she will make some calls to her colleagues and get us help.

But God! He shows us each and every day that he is with our family, giving us our daily bread just for today. I was just talking to my bestie as I walked into Walmart about how much help I needed because I still feel so far behind. This woman made me cry in line because I knew it was God who sent her. It was a Devine appointment if I ever saw one.

God continues to hold us. And show us that he is still here. And we are not forgotten. And that he cares for our family.

Photos of our day, and ways I made our hotel more comfortable and familiar for our kids. And that last video? Can I just get a hallelujah and amen for the fact that all my kids can be laughing right now?! After everything they have seen and experienced. And the fear they felt. And all these changes and instability they've endured. God is so good. This alone amazes me to no end. I'm telling you! These kids are so resilient!

** Update **

[This update was posted on May 11, 2025 on my private social media page. So I'm sharing it here as well.]

We are so thankful for my in-laws who have cared for us these past almost two weeks! But being so far away from home, and the kids' school was pretty difficult.

Thankfully we have State Farm and they have been absolutely WONDERFUL.

On our way to the hotel, we stopped at the house to pick up a couple things. It was the first time my husband has been back there since the accident. We really needed to talk through it the nearer we got to our neighborhood. It was very difficult for him, and I gave him the privacy and space he needed as he walked around to the back of our home to see the charred remains of that day. Prayers as he is starting to cope with it all and it's starting to all sink in. 

We are staying in an extended stay hotel not far from home. This will help make all the back and forth so much easier when I have to be there for the crew doing the repair and remediation work to our house, while also bouncing back and forth for Rob's meds and any help he needs, while also giving the kids a fun little experience.

The kids have amazed me with their resilience, and God has carried our family's burden so our yolk has been surprisingly light. He has been with us, and all of your prayers have been answered tenfold. Thank you for praying! Everyone in the hydro lab is still surprised at how quickly my husband is healing. 

Prayers as we try to present our hotel stay as a family adventure/ staycation, instead of being displaced because of fire and trauma. And prayers as I try to create a comfortable but temporary home for our children so they can develop a stable routine. And prayers that they actually sleep and don't scream and cause a raucous for guests around us. I always get nervous about that part with our rigid three, as they can become emotionally dysregulated from all this change around them. Already my chest is tight with anxiety as I fight against trying to control everything like my running toddler with his heavy footfalls. And all their nervous energy at bedtime, since we just checked in. 😩

Thank you again for all of your prayers! Our family is doing our best. We're just happy to have my husband "home" with us!

Well, he still isn’t back to work. The silver infused special wraps are antimicrobial and antibacterial, and will be on for a week until he goes back to hydro to have them removed and reassessed for re-dressing. He has follow up appointments, and a whole bin of meds to maintain his pain levels, and healing as he continues his recovery at home. We are still not in our own house and are not sure when the crews will come to complete the work that needs done. The project manager did come by to take measurements, and photos, and do her “white glove test” to check each space in our home for soot and smoke damage. Because it has been so difficult being so far away and my husband will need me at least 6 times a day for care, we will be moving into an extended stay hotel until the work is completed at our home. This presents us with another set of challenges in and of itself as our children need routine. So we hope they will be okay with us taking a “stay-cation” near home as a way to “celebrate their dad being back home.” So we really appreciate all of the prayers as we continue on with Rob’s recovery. We still have a road ahead of us, but the kids are ecstatic to have their dad back to see and talk to. And one day, hug. 

Lastly, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the thoughtful care, and selflessness of my mothers-in-law as they’ve bent over backwards and postponed their beach vacation on behalf of our children, and making sure I could be available to be there to support, advocate, care for, and love my husband through this. Without their help providing our children with love, and support, all of this would have been far more difficult than it already is. Words cannot express the amount of love and gratitude we have for them, and the rest of our immediate family for showing up and showing out for us. Thank you!

Update: Saturday May 10 –

I cannot tell you how many times I have sat down to open up this laptop and write this update over the last week. Every time I tried, I was interrupted by a nurse, a need, or a sneak attack nap. It has been 11 days since my husband caught fire and stood in front of an explosion that destroyed the shed he was standing in front of, blowing it out at the seams and sent the door flying and the flames climbing up the side of our house.

But today? I am no longer sleep deprived. I have awoken from nine hours of sleep on a sofa, next to my snoring husband who is beside me in a recliner. And I can think, exhale, and type.

Finally.

My husband was released from the hospital yesterday, but more on how that came about. Since his stay began on April 29th, I have spent my time running back and forth to where we are staying almost an hour away from our home and the hospital. In fact, I am sitting on a basement floor to keep from waking the house, and on day three of wearing and sleeping in the same jeans and tshirt. I have passed out on an air conditioner vent multiple times, slept in my car in a driveway, on my in-law’s sofa, and once I briefly fell asleep on the turnpike just before the Butler exit. Most days have involved at least 2-3 hours of driving, but yesterday involved 4-5 as I drove an hour to take the kids to school, then almost an hour to the hospital to pick up my husband, then an hour back to my in-laws to drop him off, then turned around and immediately drove an hour back to the school to pick our kids up, then an hour back to my in-laws. And then 40 mins to run out for dinner and back. Instead of typing updates, I have been brushing teeth, cutting and feeding food, wiping, bathing, changing gowns and bedding, adjusting beds and blankets, washing faces and changing ointment, running down the hall to get someone to help because my husband slipped into crisis three nights in a row … all while holding my babies in the morning, answering all of their questions, listening to their stories from school, helping them with little projects, finding time to take them out for fun or ice cream while my inlaws visit my husband, folding laundry, reading bedtime stories, easing the concerns of a tantruming and confused toddler, and snuggling. I have been to the house three times – to grab things our children needed and take photos and videos for our homeowners insurance, to meet the cause and origin expert and our claim agent to physically walk them through the events of that day and show them all the ways the fire, smoke, and hose water damaged our home, and lastly to begin a bit of cleanup even though the restoration company will come through and re-wipe surfaces, walls, ceilings, appliances, and furniture. I have made countless phone calls to agents related to this accident, but also coordinating visits, restoration and insurance coverage, updating my husband’s human resources department, coordinating care of our home and family, while also managing my own physical and health needs, meeting with the kids’ school for their normal end-of-school-year transition plans with each of their success teams, updating and meeting with our toddler’s therapists for his sessions. And being everywhere, all at once. I feel like I am a one person baseball team, covering all the bases and field positions for both sides simultaneously. Hene why I’m sitting on a basement floor on day three of wearing the same clothes, and having exactly one shower in the last 12 days.

I have had nowhere to write those words, and as I’ve gone back and forth with others on what I should be and should not be sharing about my husband, I thought that I’d share my own stuff here as well. Everyone forgets the collateral damage of tragedy, and the toll it takes on the family. And now that my husband is home safe, I can exhale all the things I haven’t typed or said. Thank you for getting through that with me.

Moving on – I want to now share how my husband came to be home on day 12 since his accident.

When my husband was first admitted and we spoke with the burn team, they explained to us that everything we see on the onset is going to deepen once the initial shock sets in and is expressed by the body. So in the ER we watched my husband’s face swell to almost twice it’s size because the body was sending fluid to protect the deeper layers of skin. This caused all of that skin to break and need to be removed over the entirety of his face. This same process repeated itself around his neck, spots on his back, and all the way down his arms, hands, fingers and fingertips. Swelling, breaking open, removal, and exposure needing to be covered and protected from infection. Each of his burn sites did deepend into the next category of burn, resulting in 2nd and third degree burns over all of those areas. How I understood the burn doc was that if surgery was the starting point at 0, then my husband was in the negative and needed time to heal to the point of being able to tolerate surgery safely. So we waited each day while he was taken to the hydro-lab of the burn unit and had all of those areas debrided, scrubbed, and re-wrapped. I cannot imagine the pain he experienced each day during this procedure, but he assured me his spirits were up. That God was with him. That he could feel people praying for him. And on the first day of being in his own room, he heard a sermon that spoke about God not wasting pain. That even if God doesn’t cause the pain, he allows it for a purpose, for excision, for teaching, and for healing. This one sermon put all of this into the perspective my husband needed to endure the pain. To accept it. And not to spend energy he didn’t have in fighting the process. He allowed what was happening to him each day to happen, and wash over him. Instead he looked for ways he could use the only thing he really had available to him – his voice. And he shared his story, his testimony, with others. He listened as they shared theirs, and it made the hours spent in hydro each morning bearable and life giving.

Then Monday came, day 6 post-accident, and the surgeon attended his hydro session. They had sedated him so the surgeon could really dig into burn areas to assess burn staging at each site, and put together a surgical plan. She then covered him back up with wet wraps and updated our family. When I spoke to her on the phone on that Monday, she explained that there were areas of second and third degree burns that would at least need skiing grafts harvested from my husband’s thigh, but that they would have cadaver skin prepared to cover the deeper areas as they got to them. If he only needed his own skin, then his stay would be extended another five days. If he needed cadaver skin, his stay would be extended another two weeks and he would go through more surgery as his body rejected the donor skin. We prepared ourselves for one of those two outcomes. And the hydro nurse, who was a 40 year veteran of the unit, agreed. Tuesday came and went as we mentally prepared and stealed ourselves for surgery the next day, Wednesday.

On Wednesday, our husband was prepped for surgery. They gave him lots of meds which made him relax and sleep. They prepared the harvest site for grafts, gave a nerve block, and took him up to surgery for grafting. He was in surgery for hours, and in recovery. But when we finally heard back from the surgeon, we were all shocked – including the surgeon and eventually hydro-staff on the next day. For when she uncovered the wet wraps to begin surgery on his arms, she found healing skin at each site she identified for different stage grafts.

Admittedly, that bit of information is still sinking in. She just saw his arms on Monday, prepped him for grafts on Wednesday and uncovered his arms to find there WASN’T A NEED FOR GRAFTS. So what she ended up doing was a debridement, and re-wrapping him. He couldn’t feel his arms for 24 hours until the nerve block wore off. And we were all amazed, and praising God. We shared with our immediate family and friends via a forwarded voice message. And we celebrated this victory even if we and the hospital staff didn’t fully understand. And then we were shocked again when the staff said he could be discharged that day but needed to show evidence that the pain medications didn’t do GI damage. So they kept him until then. He was still there all day Thursday, going down to the hydro lab, and waiting for things to move along so he could be discharged. Finally, Thursday evening he showed evidence of meeting discharge requirements, and so I was able to pick him up from the hospital yesterday afternoon after going to Target to get all the things he needed for recovery back home – like XL sleeveless tops and XXL bottoms, slip on shoes, and a special foam cushion to sit on his lap to rest his bandaged arms. Just don’t tell him I got it in the nursing supplies aisle because it works like a charm at protecting him from Pittsburgh potholes and the strain of holding his arms up in a way that minimizes his pain.

So now that he is home, now what?

** Update continued for word count limits ...

First, I want to apologize for the delay in update. There was a lot of information we have been waiting on. And I have spent most of my time focusing on taking care of my husband in the hospital and bouncing back and forth to my in-law's with the kids. With that said, I am absolutely astounded by the amount of prayers and support we have received in just the last two days since this campaign has gone live. I have tried really hard to stay away from negative comments on social media and focus on the love and support that I see here.

Our kids each continue to struggle in their own unique ways. But I am amazed to see the way our oldest son has really stepped up and has taken on such a responsible role in supporting his brother and sister. Today he woke up having a hard time, but when I asked who wanted to give the baby his surprise donut this morning my oldest son jumped up and said he wanted to so he "could see (his brother's) happy face." He needed that moment of shared happiness as much, if not more, than our toddler thought he needed that donut. And they HUGGED. Our children amaze me in the way they have come together to support each other.

As for Rob: He has had sedated debridement of both arms now by this point to assess for damage, burn thickness, and surgical needs. As of today, he is expected to go into surgery on Wednesday. His blood pressure was a little elevated today, and they're going to check to make sure everything is stable for him to go to surgery. Once in surgery, they will be able to determine if he can have his own skin grafted or if he needs donor skin. Depending on which, will inform us on the length of his stay. In other great news, it seems that after a very rocky 5 days of unstable stats and emergencies, nursing staff and various specialty teams have figured out the best timing for his care and med management so that he isn't left without either during the 7 pm staff change when he would experience sun-downing in his pain. When that happens, the sudden uptick in pain causes his body to burn through stores of synthetic hormone responsible for maintaining some of his vitals. Then when that happens, he has a sudden drop of vitals, which could lead to cardiovascular collapse or shock. He can feel it happening like when a diabetic feels their blood sugar dropping. But once it creeps past a certain point, then his vitals speed downhill very quickly. And that is what has complicated his care, that and the last time the burn unit had a patient with his underlying condition was ten years ago. So no one on the nursing staff has had any experience with it. I have been doing a ton of education and advocacy on his behalf because I know how important it is for his care.

Lastly, I met with our homeowner's insurance today and the fire expert guy. It was much more emotional and difficult than I thought it would be to walk through with these two men, answering all of their questions. I felt like I was on the stand. I know it is a part of their job. But to have to explain in excruciating detail .... so hard.

I stopped at CFA Wexford to try to get something in my system and took a call, and afterwards one of the managers? Cory, stopped to talk with me, and pray. He generously provided me with a gift card for meals since he noticed my GF bun and realized I probably do not have many options for food on the road than CFA. It's little moments like that that let me know God is with us. And the incredible outpouring of love from all of you ... I don't have the words to describe what this all means to my family and I. Again, thank you so much for your generosity. After consulting with people that know much more about all of this than me, we have decided to leave funds sit ... because honestly, it feels overwhelming and a ton of responsibility. I haven't even gotten to the financial impact of this all. I'm still trying to organize paperwork, and lists, and coordinate restoration and volunteer efforts. But once we figure out what our needs are, we will begin writing checks to all the places and businesses that need them. And because of your generosity we will be able to. I will continue to update as often as I can. For now, I have to end this update as I have received a call asking when I will be at the hospital to help feed my husband.

With so much love and gratitude,

The Rech Family

Rob has been switched to constant pain management, which we're thankful for. And after a very rough three days of slipping into crisis and tanking vitals, it seems the different depts. and teams at the hospital have a handle on how to work together to manage his underlying conditions with the amount of pain and injury he is under. He had deep exploration of one of his arms a couple days ago, and now they're going to put him under again so they can do a very thorough exploration of the extent of damage to his right arm to determine the surgical needs of that side. So by the end of day or tomorrow we should be able to meet with the burn team to start putting together a timeline and surgical plan for Rob. He hasn't slipped into adrenal crisis for a little over 24 hours, so we're hoping the changes they made to his care is going to help keep him and his vital stats stable. Thank you to everyone who have been praying, giving, and sharing this campaign. The weight of this all is crippling!

Love,
The Rech Family