Last week, amid the debris of their burned-out house, an Altadena couple who lost everything in the Eaton Fire in early January saw a glimmer of hope.
Brian McShea and Stephanie Raynor knew what they were getting back to when they went back to their neighborhood to look through the rubble from the terrible fire that destroyed thousands of other homes.
“We already knew it looked like this, so we knew most things were gone,” McShae added.
He was attending his grandmother’s funeral across the nation in Pennsylvania when the fire started. But the pets and his ex-girlfriend were still at home.
She packed up her pets and planned to return home the following day when evacuation orders were issued.
“So I pack an overnight bag with my pajamas, my food for the evening, the dog and cat food, and the dog and the cat,” added Raynor. “And I’m like, alright, we’re going to my in-law’s house for the night and I’ll be back in the morning.”
Their landlord contacted shortly after to inform them that the house they occupied was no longer there.
“First thing I did was definitely, I broke down,” she stated. “It solidified basically what I already knew.”
After the neighborhood was examined by authorities and judged to be reasonably secure for a temporary return, they were eventually allowed to go back there last week.
“I came with the purpose of finding my great grandmother’s jewelry,” said Raynor. “There are two rings. In addition, my grandmother left me a ring.
Until February, when he was preparing to pop the question to Raynor, she was unaware that her now fianc was also looking for a specific piece of jewelry, the engagement ring he was storing.
“I’d pick up a ring and it’d be a washer and I’m on my knees digging through stuff, brushing away ash and I pick up a little ring,” he said. “At the end of it was a diamond and the ring was all black and the diamond was shining.”
Then he turned to Raynor and asked the question he had been meaning to ask for a long time.
“She said yes, and we had a masked kiss and we just had a big hug,” he continued.
“I have goggles on over my glasses and I start crying, fogging up, and I’m like, ‘Of course, yes!'” “Raynor said.”
They claim that the moment is a lovely representation of their enduring love and their ongoing resolve to overcome obstacles together, even if the manner they got engaged was far different from what either of them had ever imagined.
“You know, to go through something like this and then by the end, to end up engaged is incredible,” remarked Raynor.
In the wreckage, McShae also discovered his grandmother’s ring.
“I don’t know how, but we were meant to find them,” she continued.
At a time when their community most needs it, they hope that their narrative will help bring some positivity to the area.
“The ring made it, so I think we can all make it if we all have some hope, gear up and do the work,” McShae stated. “Literally a diamond in the rough.”