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Cheryl Brown: Life goes on after devastating fire

Cheryl Brown stood with a few cherished items that were saved from her burning house. (Fred Lynch) [Click to enlarge]

Cheryl Brown, 46, had been meaning to empty her Sikeston home. She never got the chance. On Nov. 8, a lifetime of treasures went up in smoke in 90 minutes.

A borrowed space heater started a fire while she slept, destroying her home and most of her possessions.

"This is not quite exactly how I planned on going through my stuff," she said. "One of my true blessings is that it didn't break my heart. It scared the living bejebees out of me. I thought I was going to die. But God isn't finished with me yet."

Among her other blessings: Her three sons, Christopher, 23, Michael, 17, and Jason, 13, were not home. Brown is in the midst of a divorce and the boys were visiting their dad.

The home she lived in for 17 years is a total loss. The insurance lapsed in August.

After a futile attempt to douse the early morning blaze, a pajama-clad Brown escaped with her cell phone and purse. She called 911, sat on a swing in her front yard, thanked God for sparing her life, and waited for firefighters.

Relatives, friends, neighbors and pastors have surrounded her with support. One helped her replace some clothes; Cindy Taylor opened her home.

Though she'd only started a job behind the deli counter at the Sikeston Food Giant, Brown said her employer was "kind and understanding enough to give me a week off. They would have given me longer."

Cindy Taylor's son, Drew, poked around in the debris and recovered a few treasures, including the handmade jewelry box Brown inherited more than 30 years ago from her great-grandmother.

Tanner Street Church of God pastor Larry Smith said a fund is in being organized to help Brown get back on her feet. In the meantime, she's staying with friends and planning to move into a rental property.

"I have the love and family that I wish everyone had," she said.