Shannon Cathcart and his fiancee, Erin Weber, were at an early family Christmas gathering on Dec. 17 when the phone rang. Their house was on fire.

They zipped into the car toward their house in rural Sparta, when another friend's call came. They could slow down -- there would be nothing left by the time they returned.

Clothes, food, money, gift cards -- they have appeared out of the kindness of friends and strangers' hearts alike. Cathcart, 24, a Marissa native, and Weber, 26, from Highland, have existed largely on their generosity.

Despite the offerings and anticipated relief from their insurance company, the couple's post-fire recovery has been fraught with frustration and fatigue.

Their new digs are a 30-foot camper -- courtesy of Weber's father -- on the same 10-acre plot where their old home sat. Hot water is in short supply, and room to roam only comes by stepping outside.

Everything burned in the couple's old 2,000-square-foot home, which they had lived in for a little over a year. The blaze, likely caused by a space heater, charred practical and sentimental belongings alike. That includes treasured quilts from Weber's grandmother and irreplaceable family furniture and photographs.

"It's difficult dealing with not having a house to walk into every night," said Cathcart, who grew weary of living in a hotel for two weeks until they could settle into the camper.

Bunking with family or renting a new place were options, but the couple's love for animals made abandoning their land too much to bear. Their seven horses, three dogs and assortment of feathered friends compelled the couple to remain on the premises.

"The biggest part that makes me still feel like this is home is all the animals," said Cathcart, who trains horses in addition to his job with Marissa's waste management department. "That's our life."

While the couple waits for the insurance process to play out, plans are already in motion for a new home. The log structure will be built where their old one was within a year, with plans to move in as soon as the basement is fit for inhabitants.

The insurance payoff will not be enough to cover a new home, causing Cathcart to consider selling some of his few possessions not consumed by the fire.

"I never thought at 24 years old we'd be making the decisions we're making now as far as building a house," Cathcart said. "It's a lot to put on somebody."

Enough stress to put any relationship to the test. That's why Weber, who works at Marissa's Subway and at Marissa Junior-Senior High, isn't sure premarital counseling will be necessary.

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