Posted on 03/16/2006 5:36:30 AM PST by FerdieMurphy
A toppled candle destroyed the home and belongings of an out-of-work nurse and her 10 children
During the late-afternoon confusion, a candle flame grew Monday into a potentially deadly blaze in the home where Kerren Laitaille had been raising her 10 children.
In a matter of minutes, the fire destroyed family pictures, most of their clothes, beds, just about everything they owned. Everything, that is, except their faith.
“It’s shown me I’m blessed with my kids and shown me people do care and are there for you,” Laitaille said Wednesday morning in her all-too-temporary home: a room at Hawthorn Suites in North Naples.
After the fire, the Collier County Red Cross set her up in the plush hotel room for three days, and the hotel offered an additional day at its own expense. That gave Laitaille, a 34-year-old out-of-work nurse and single mother, until 11 a.m. Friday to find a new place.
She doesn’t know what she will do when check-out time arrives. Her old home, which she rented, is no longer inhabitable.
In the meantime, her children, who range in age from 5 months to 15 years, have been watching television and playing video games to pass the time. Those who are old enough to go to school can’t because they don’t have a change of clothes.
For her part, Laitaille has been living in a controlled state of anxiety. Reading the Bible, she said, has kept doubt from consuming her the way the fire raged through her Golden Gate house.
Like most fires, this one started small.
Someone, perhaps one of the younger children, accidentally upended a candle in the master bathroom. The flame must have landed on or near a clothes basket because it spread quickly, said Victor Hill, a spokesman with the Golden Gate fire department.
A pungent odor filled the house at 5280 20th Place S.W. When Laitaille opened her bedroom door to see what was the matter, she encountered a wall of flames. She hollered for everyone to get out.
One of her sons, 13-year-old Derrick St. Claire, guided the others to safety, displaying remarkable calm.
“First, I had to get the small ones out,” the boy recalled Wednesday. “Then, I had to get the girls out, and then the rest of the boys out. Then we had to dial 911. We had everyone out of the house and safe.”
Golden Gate firefighters received the call at 5:55 p.m. and arrived at the house three minutes later, Hill said. Smoke poured from the eaves of the roof, making the house resemble a pot of boiling water with the lid still on top. The fire would go on to cause $50,000 in damage, Hill added.
Within 10 minutes, the fire was under control, but Laitaille’s life was spinning in the other direction.
A neighbor she had never spoken to before would turn out to be what Laitaille later called a “guardian angel.” The woman, a single mother of five children herself, tried to calm a disconsolate Laitaille and urged her not to re-enter the burning home.
Barbara Bekich, 38, stayed with the family for three hours in front of their ruined home as firefighters finished putting out the fire and concluded their investigation. She raided her children’s closets to give the family clothes and brought them diapers, Pop Tarts, water and Cheezits.
“Really,” Bekich said of Laitaille, “she needed a hand held.”
More help came when the Red Cross gave the family a $400 debit card to help replace clothes and other items lost to the fire. Laitaille said Wednesday she hadn’t used the card yet because she thought it hadn’t been activated.
But Jerry Welty, emergency services director for the Collier Red Cross, said it was ready to use when he handed it to her. Laitaille and her family were one of three families the Collier Red Cross has helped after fires during this week alone, Welty said.
Welty said he couldn’t remember the agency ever dealing with such a large single family. The suite the charity rented for her has three king-size beds and a pull-out sofa.
Laitaille, a native of the Bahamas who moved to Miami at 7 years of age, decided from an early age she wanted a big family. That way, each child would have someone to rely on and be relied upon. She was once engaged to be married to the man who fathered eight of her children, but he moved back to the east coast instead.
Since her van broke down two months ago, she has been unable to work as a private nurse and has been living on child support. A family friend this week put up the money to rent a van for her to get around.
Welty said that since the Red Cross only offers short-term help, he hoped another charity would step in by the end of the week to help the family find housing.
Laitaille, who grew up in the Baptist church, has turned to her faith to ease her frayed emotions. On Tuesday night, she read the comforting Psalm 23 seven times.
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want,” it reads. “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. ...”
She must have missed the part, "God helps those who help themselves."
Did we all get up on the grumpy side of the bed this morning?
No, but we weren't born last night either. This woman is not a fit parent and her children should be put in a fit home with adult supervision.
Most of us have been in one of these situations. If it's merely bad luck that got her into all of them at once, she's dangerous to be around.
This is about the dumbest statement I have seen yet.
So any mother ,that is forced to raise her children alone,because of reasons like the death of the father or the father leaving his wife(common law or by marriage) and children ,is now labeled as a child abuser.
You are out of your mind.
I didn't read any where in this article that she was living on welfare or that she received assistance from the government.The help she is receiving now is from a CHARITY and this same CHARITY would help you as well ,in the event of a disaster.
If you have to ask, I'm not telling.
How do you know that the youngest children were not fathered by her common law husband? she could have had the two eldest by another relationship. I don't see that being in a relationship with one person for at least 8 years to be promiscuous.
She could have gotten married with 12 bridesmaids, in church, lavish reception, and still ended up like this. If that were so, would you still call her irresponsible?
I'm sure while the father was living in the home, things worked. Like everyone is fond of mentioning beans and cornbread, you can make it work. It sounded like she was making it work...until her vehicle broke down. Then the house caught fire. Sh*t happens, and I don't think she needs to be judged so harshly.
That pretty much covers it.
If a young girl has a child out of wedlock that should be considered a mistake, albeit a stupid one. When the second one is born both should be taken from her and she should be sent to a reformatory because she is a threat to society!
This simpleton is nothing but a breed sow.
The government should keep their noses out of everybody's wallets and personal lives.
The Federal Government pays state Social Service agencies for not only every child they place in foster care, but also for every child that is placed in adoption.
I don't even want to ask why....
This sounds like the story of Kerren's life.
I stood behind a woman in Walmart the other day. A truckload of kids, a shopping cart full of junk food, and a big hassle with the food stamp card. The kids were out of control and damaging everything around them. Sounds similar.
Intentionally raising a child without a father is child abuse. Unintentionally doing so is a different case--it's on par with unintentionally letting them die of starvation or disease, presumably because one is ignorant of the seriousness of the child's condition, or is too stupid to call a doctor.
So any mother ,that is forced to raise her children alone,because of reasons like the death of the father...
You're changing the subject: we're talking about Laitaille, not a war-widow. She didn't lose her husband; she never had a husband. She cheerfully made babies with a man without making him say "I do" first. That means exactly one of two things: she's stupid enough to believe that he'll stay forever, because he whispered a few sweet nothings; or she doesn't think it matters whether he stays forever. The latter case is either stupidity or child abuse, where my money would be on stupidity.
Madonna and Murphy Brown, by contrast, are child abusers.
Yup, it's a great racket. Adopt a minority or disabled kid, get payments for the next 18 years. I've known folks who ran regular baby mills out of their homes, as their sole source of income.
I don't think it was a deliberate decision to raise ten kids by herself. The article states that the father of 8 of them, moved to the east coast. What is she supposed to do?
You and Mrs. Shalom have a stable marriage, and adoption is a good thing. Good luck : )
She isn't the one who skipped out on her responsibilities,it was the father of the 8 kids that did.
the father leaving his wife(common law or by marriage)
You forgot this part of my comment.
Just because the father left after 8 years or 8 children doesn't make her someone that is abusing her children.
It was a long term relationship and the father of 8 of the children left her ,to raise them on her own and she has done the best she can under the circumstances.
Exactly, that's why I called her "stupid": she wanted the man to help her raise her eight kids, but took no steps to help make sure it happened. It was extremely forseeable that a man who knocks up an unmarried girl is likely to move on eventually, even if he does move in with you at one point.
What is she supposed to do?
I know what! She should find another man, and have two more kids out of wedlock! Sheer brilliance! Yup, I'll be happy to swap Paypal addresses so we can bet whether she's stupid or not. In fact, I guess it's enough if I give you mine, since you'll be the one paying up. :-)
You and Mrs. Shalom have a stable marriage, and adoption is a good thing. Good luck : )
Thanks!
Thank you. I don't think people read past the topic headline before they started the usual invectives : (
Don't people here know that there is a whole other world out there, where people don't have 401k's, health insurance, and college educations? You have to have faith. Sometimes you prosper, sometimes you get burned...
You forgot this part of my comment.
No I didn't: I smashed it to pieces by daring you to bet me whether the first child was born before or after they started shacking up together. You simply can't equate this with a marriage; Laitaille went and got herself knocked up out of wedlock, and then like a stupid cow she proceeded to repeat the trick seven more times.
Any girl who assumes the guy is in it for life, and doesn't find it suspicious that he doesn't tie the knot, is stupid. And any girl who starts pumping out babies before putting him through at least the simplest loyalty test--a ring and ceremony--is also stupid. Unless she didn't want a permanent relationship in the first place, in which case she's of questionable moral character.
Just because the father left after 8 years or 8 children doesn't make her someone that is abusing her children.
I already stipulated that she might not be an abuser--she might just be stupid. Did you miss the mention of Madonna and Murphy Brown, by way of contrast?
It was a long term relationship and the father of 8 of the children left her...
There was nothing "long term" about it when she started banging him. She was nineteen, and gave it up without so much as making him say "I do" first.
I hope girls are insulted when they hear the proverb, "Who needs the cow when the milk is free?" I hope they're VERY insulted. And if the shoe fits, I hope they take a good hard look into the mirror, and say "MOOOO!"
Oh great, now the woman is a child abuser.
Look, just because we were raised to a particular standard, doesn't mean that she is stupid, or slutty. She mentioned that they were engaged, for what reason I don't know. Maybe she's embarassed for being abandoned after all that time. Technically she is married to him byway of common law. She probably doesn't know this, as she didn't know that the debit card was activated upon receipt : (
Why are we analyzing this woman? Why the personal attacks on a complete stranger?
What is she supposed to say? He gave her a ring and it wasn't finalized, although he stuck around long enough to father 8 kids. Why does everyone assume the last two aren't his? The first two could have been from a different father. JMJ, someone from this thread should demand DNA samples to clear this up!
Is your problem with the fact that they didn't get a state marriage license? Heck if you think about it, their relationship lasted longer than a lot of couples.
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