PORT VINCENT — A family is clinging to faith and one another after a devastating fire reduced their home on the Amite River to ashes on June 5.
Carol Angelloz is leaning on God and the hope of “new beginnings” as she and her loved ones grapple with the loss of their home and nearly everything in it.
“I had just walked out of Bible study, and my son called me, and he said, ‘Mom, the house is on fire.’ And I was like, ‘What?’ He’s like, ‘Our house is on fire. There’s flames everywhere,’” Angelloz recalled to UWK, as she fought through tears. “He could hear popping. He thought I was home, so he kept looking for me.”
Angelloz’s 22-year-old son, Dalton, was home at the time, along with the family’s dog and cat. Dalton managed to escape with their Wheaten Terrier, Triscuit. The family is still unsure whether their cat survived.
The fire broke out in broad daylight around 11:30 a.m. A passerby in a boat on the river spotted the flames and called 911. Multiple local fire departments responded and spent hours battling the blaze, but the home could not be saved. Two firefighters were treated for heat exhaustion while fighting the fire.
Angelloz raced home from Bible study, heart pounding. “I couldn’t get there fast enough,” she said. Her twin sister warned her not to go to the house, to spare her the trauma of seeing it burn. But as she got closer, she couldn’t ignore what was happening.
Overwhelmed at the scene, she asked a neighbor to bring Dalton and Triscuit to her. She couldn’t bear to watch any longer. Even now, she hasn’t brought herself to watch the video footage neighbors have shared of the flames engulfing her home.
Later that evening, Carol and her husband returned to the property with their adult children to sift through what remained. The fire was out, but the silence was heavy.
“My first thought was ‘devastation,’ and then right after that, it was ‘new beginnings’,” she said.
The family lost everything: furniture, clothes, cherished photos, even the wedding ring Carol had worn for more than 30 years.
“It was sentimental. It was a beautiful ring,” she recalled to UWK. “But ‘new beginnings, new beginnings.'”
Almost nothing survived the fire. But one thing did: her Bible.
A neighbor found it in the wreckage and brought it to her. Though singed and blackened, two pages from the Gospel of Mark were still visible.
“It’s the most beautiful Bible verse, just reminding us what Jesus went through in the Last Supper, and how scared He was, and how He called out that He didn’t want to go through it, but He knew He had to. And He did it for us.”
She paused.
“So it just reminded me, there’s nothing we can’t get through in this life. There’s nothing.”
How to help the Angelloz family
Although the house was on the market, Angelloz and her family had been living in the home. They have no clothing or other essentials currently after having lost everything. Angelloz said she did run by a store last night to buy toothbrushes, toothpaste and some pajamas.
To help the family, donations are being accepted for the following items:
- Carol: Size 6 or Medium, shoe size 6.5
- Dalton (son): Large in shorts and shirts, 36-inch waist, 32 length, shoe size 12
- Wade (husband): XL shirts and shorts, 11.5-12 shoe size, size 40-inch waist, 30-inch length
The family is also in need of all undergarments and everyday essentials like toiletries, she said. Gift cards to local stores are also helpful right now for the family. They are currently staying with family at this time.
Donations can be dropped off at their business: KCK Permanent Makeup, 27943 LA Hwy. 16 Suite 1 Denham Springs, LA. For gift card donations, reach out to UWK.
In addition, the family has created a GoFundMe for those who wish to help that way.
Even in the midst of tragedy, Angelloz said she is grateful for everything people have done so far and that her family is all safe.
“I just feel so blessed and thankful for all the people that have reached out,” she said. “It doesn’t sound like it, but I have a peace that surpasses all understanding. My husband and I just so grateful to be OK with my kids and everything else. So it’s like we’re going to get through this. We’re going to come out stronger, and we’re going to come out giving God all the glory.”
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