CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — On Monday, December 19th, everything changed.
"I just heard a loud boom. I opened the door and looked out and I saw the whole house in flames. As soon as I saw it, I just took off running and I was screaming for my grandparents. I was hoping they were outside, but they were inside still sleeping," said Jasmine Lopez, the granddaughter of homeowner, Daniel Pena.
Seven people lived in the house. Pamela Perkins grew up in, and raised her daughter, Jasmine. It's where generations of memories came to life.
"I ran around the hall and circled the hall, and I thought I was going to get in trouble, and it turned into a game between me and my dad and I start laughing and before I knew it, he caught me on the other end. I was just going in a circle. When he caught me, it was funny, we laughed, but at the same time, I'm caught now," said Perkins.
It hosted every Christmas, Easter and birthday party.
"Everybody's staying at my daughters. My daughter lives right across the street. It's hard for my parents to even want to leave. They don't want to leave. This is their home. They're right across the street and everyone is piled into her apartment. It's super small," Perkins added.
The family set up a go-fund-me page to get the help they'll need to start over and plant new roots that will grow strong for generations just like before.
"It's going to go to toiletries, it's going to go to clothes, furniture. What they had in their home, it took them many years to get. As humble and they lived, it took a long time," said Perkins.
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