‘All of our memories are here’: Family shares heartbreak after loss of NE Bend home to fire
Claire Elmer
(Update: adding comments from family members)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — A Northeast Bend family returned Tuesday to what remains of their home, days after a late-night fire destroyed two residences and caused more than $1 million in damage.
For the Juarez family, the house was more than a structure. It was where they grew up, celebrated birthdays, and built a lifetime of memories.
“All of our memories are here. I can’t pick one,” said Gabriela Juarez, who lived in the home with her mother and siblings. “They’re all precious to me now. Even the bad ones, they’re all special now.”
The fire broke out late on May 21, just hours after the family had gathered to celebrate the youngest family member’s 5th birthday.
Gabriela said they had noticed the smell of smoke earlier in the day, but did not know where it was coming from, even after checking WatchDuty and neighbors online.
Hours later, the family woke up to smoke and flames.
“It all happened so fast,” Gabriela said. “By the time I ran through, the door was already covered in flames. The whole night I could just still feel the heat on my back from the flames behind me.”
Everyone made it out safely. But Gabriela said the fire moved so quickly, a matter of seconds could have changed the outcome.
“I’m so glad that I didn’t waste any time grabbing anything,” she said. “Our fire alarms were good and recent updated. We don’t remember hearing anything. We don’t even remember hearing sirens. We were so in shock.”
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
On Tuesday, Gabriela returned to the home for the first time. What remained was mostly ash, twisted metal, and collapsed walls. But within the damage, the family found a few precious items that survived — including a small souvenir and old family keepsakes.
Gabriela’s mother, Maria Contreras, said she found boxes of family photos, birthday cards, and school projects through a hole in the garage wall.
One of those items, made by Gabriela’s sister, Destiny, when she was a child, went from a stored ceramic to a prized keepsake.
“Destiny made a little bowl at school. It was like a chocolate brown color,” Maria said. “I remember when she brought it home when she was little, I thought it was so ugly. And when I reached in and grabbed that, it was the most beautiful thing I’ve seen.”
The family is now working through insurance, temporary housing, and the long recovery process ahead. Gabriela said the support they have received from the community has helped keep them going.
“It’s crazy to see strangers donate to us and send us messages and call us and show up for us when they never knew us,” she said. “It’s definitely helping.”
Even surrounded by loss, the family said they are focusing on what they still have: each other, and a community helping them through.
Gabriela has set up a GoFundMe to help support the family.