Kirkmans hope for Christmas miracle
Robert Kirkman holds on to the box containing his father's ashes. The box was one of several items saved in a house fire in July that destroyed the Kirkman's home.
MOSES LAKE — The Kirkman family is hoping for a Christmas miracle.
“I hope someone out there has a heart and is willing to help us out,” said Robert Kirkman, 28.
Last July, the family lost their home on Rainier Drive in Moses Lake and most of their belongings in a house fire.
Firefighters were able to save wedding rings, wallet, three pictures, personal documents and ashes of loved ones.
But they were unable to save the house the family lived in for 29 years.
Robert’s mother Kim, his brother, Todd, 17, and nephew Joey, 15, were displaced from the house fire.
Firefighters believe the fire was sparked by something between the storage shed and home, said Robert Kirkman.
The family has lived in makeshift tents on the house property until recently.
“When it got negative 19 that one day, my sister called me and told us ‘No, you have to live with us,” said Kim Kirkman.
The family of four crammed into her sister’s three-bedroom house on Catalpa Drive. Nine people currently live at the house, she said.
The family is living off of $441 per month from the federal aid program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
Kim cannot work due to the health issues concerning her knees and Robert has had a tough time finding jobs.
“I even applied at McDonald’s,” he said.
Kirkman said the family received $24,000 in home insurance from the fire, most of which is gone now.
The family used the money to buy a mobile home that cost $10,000 and $7,000 to remove the house from the property.
“My husband took care of the house insurance stuff when he was still alive. So I was unaware when our policy switched over to partial coverage,” said Kirkman.
She said her husband died in 2007 from emphysema.
“It’s hard to picture the memories at the house. I get depressed sometimes, every picture of my dad, of me as a child, is gone,” said Todd Kirkman.
The family is hoping to move the mobile home, which has four bedrooms and two baths, onto their property on Rainier Drive soon.
But they don’t have the money for the mobile home setup, which includes such things as pouring foundational cement, heating unit and electrical hookup.
“The mobile home is just sitting on the lot where we bought it,” said Robert Kirkman.
The family suggested other homeowners take a look at their house insurance before it’s too late.
“Had we had full insurance coverage, we would not be in this position right now,” said Kim Kirkman.
The Kirkmans are accepting donations through a bank account called the Kirkman Family Fund with Sterling Savings Bank, located at 101 E. 4th Ave.
“Whatever people think will help us is good enough. I’m happy with whatever they want to give to our family,” said Todd Kirkman.