Couple loses everything in Falcon fire

PEYTON, Colo. (KKTV) - Ray and Cathy Schwartz were enjoying a peaceful Sunday in their home when suddenly tragedy struck.

“We have a couple that are in their early 70s, dependent on oxygen, dependent on insulin, and everything is stripped away from them in a matter of minutes.”

Rabbi Michael Schoening has known the couple for years. He spoke to reporter Jack Heeke Thursday on their behalf.

“The more that you get to know Ray and Cathy Schwartz, the more you get to peel back the shell that everyone puts up, and you see these extremely giving, loving, kind, and generous people. They are community people.”

A neighbor knocked on the couple’s door and alerted them that their shed was on fire. They evacuated the home -- and minutes later it went up in flames.

“Cathy is on the phone with me and she says, ‘I don’t know what to say. I don’t know what to think. I don’t know how to feel.’ We’re just watching everything in our life absolutely burn to the ground.’”

Their home near Curtis and Patton was the only home that burned in Sunday’s 38-acre fire. The couple also lost key medical supplies.

“COVID hit Ray pretty hard. Ever since then he’s been on oxygen. He had five tanks of oxygen in the home. The home literally blew up when the fire hit that oxygen,” Schoening told Heeke.

Schoening says that Ray is a Vietnam War veteran and a Type 2 diabetic.

“All of Ray’s insulin was blown up. He couldn’t get any. That was a huge struggle, as a diabetic dependent on insulin, he didn’t have any for three days. It wasn’t until the fourth day in the morning that he was able to buy insulin. Then they had a $580 co-pay because it wasn’t time to get the insulin restocked yet.”

The couple’s home was insured but they need help from their community to get short term relief. Schoening is organizing a fundraising effort through their synagogue.

You can make a tax-deductible donation here. Just make a note that it is for Ray and Cathy.

Copyright 2022 KKTV. All rights reserved.