Family loses home to wildfire, then gets COVID-19

Not much is left of the small town of Malden. A fire decimated the Northern Whitman County community on Labor Day.

“It’s still really overwhelming. It just seems like every day there’s a long to-do list,” said Jessica Graham.

For Jessica and Matthew Graham, as well as their five young children, the last few weeks have been a blur.

When they left their home over Labor Day weekend to visit family, they had no idea that was the last time they’d see their home still standing.

Soon after, they got word of a fast-moving wildfire tearing through their town.  Miles away, they soon learned not much would be spared.

“With 80% of the town gone, it was just like what chances did we have? So I lost hope at that point,” Jessica Graham said.

Then they got confirmation that their home was gone. They lost everything. As they tried to wrap their heads around the devastation, things got worse.

“My lungs were hurting and having symptoms. But then I thought it was just from the smoke,” Matthew Graham said.

Their entire family got sick with the coronavirus. The children, who range from 5-12 years old, recovered fairly quickly. But it’s been a whole lot tougher for Jessica and Matthew Graham.

“And then the exhaustion hit me, and I basically just spent a week in bed not moving at all because it just took too much energy to move my arms or legs or anything,” Matthew Graham said.

Even now, they are still not at 100% and are fighting fatigue every day.

While they think they caught the virus from Jessica Graham’s parents, it didn’t stop with them. Matthew Graham’s mother, his two brothers and their friends — a family of nine who hosted them after they lost their home — all came down with the virus, too.

“All in all, I can handle our house burning to the ground, having coronavirus and stuff. But repaying their kindness with giving them this horrible disease is like the worst thing that could happen to us,” said Matthew Graham.

But with all the bad, there has been some good. A GoFundMe page for the Grahams has raised more than $54,000, far surpassing the initial goal of $10,000.

“I was like completely blown away,” Jessica Graham said.

“Yeah, it’s been just kind of mind-blowing,” said Matthew Graham. “I think that’s what has kept me going, or it’s made it a lot easier to keep me going.”

The Grahams are staying at a Spokane Valley hotel as they try to figure out their next steps. While they’re trying to stay positive, they also hope to spread the message that COVID-19 needs to be taken seriously. And the importance of getting tested and being quarantined.

“It’s a horrible disease. It’s a lot more miserable than the flu,” said Matthew Graham. “A lot of people just have the selfish view of just looking at, ‘Well, if you’re sick, it’s too late.’ But it isn’t too late for the people around you.”

Cox Media Group