There’s no place quite like home sweet home.

If you doubt that at all, just ask Rhonda Carkhuff. She and her family recently spent about five months waiting to come home. There was one main obstacle to their plans, though –their house no longer existed.

Rhonda was at their 200 E. Main St. home in Belmont the morning of Aug. 12 when flames tore through the structure. Her husband, Tony, had already gone to work at Barkcamp State Park, but two of their five children and their granddaughter were at the house with Rhonda. All of them, and their dog, escaped without injury.

Scott Guerin, an employee of the Tire Boyz business across the street, tried to fight the fire with a garden hose and may have rescued the family dog. He was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation.

The Belmont, Barnesville, Bethesda, Morristown, Smith Township, Lafferty and Flushing volunteer fire departments and multiple police agencies responded. Firefighters battled the blaze for hours.

According to Belmont Fire Chief Bob Mills, the fire started in the laundry room and was electrical in nature. The home the Carkhuffs had occupied for 15 years was ruled a total loss, and the family also lost all of their possessions.

Fortunately, the Carkhuffs had homeowner’s insurance. That meant that they were immediately able to find and pay for accommodations at a local hotel. They also were able to rent a house in Flushing while they made plans to rebuild.

In the meantime, their friends and other community members came together to support them. Donations of clothing, shoes, towels, linens, other household goods and school supplies flowed in quickly. In fact, the family received so many gifts that they were among the first people able to help when another couple in the village had their home damaged in an arson fire several days later.

The Carkhuffs knew what to expect in the wake of the fire. Though it may be hard to believe, the August blaze was not the first house fire the family had endured and survived. In 1993, Tony, Rhonda and their two oldest sons were living at another small home in Belmont, in the neighborhood along Green Street known as Cider Press Hill. That home also burned one night. Rhonda said that house was very old, and investigators blamed that fire on old electrical wiring.

So, after the flames at their Main Street home were doused, the family spent a few days at a hotel before moving to a brick house in Flushing. Rhonda said the brick structure brought an added sense of security to their young granddaughter, who told Rhonda and Tony she wanted them to have a brick home so the Big Bad Wolf wouldn’t be able to get them.

That toddler’s concern was a key factor in some of the decisions the family made as they built a new home on the same Main Street lot. While they did not construct a brick building, they did forego some finishing touches in exchange for a partial block facade on the front of their new home.

The house was completed about five weeks ago, and the family was able to move in. A week ago today, they opened that home to the community, inviting friends and neighbors to an open house to show their gratitude for the concern and kindness shown to them.

I was lucky enough to receive a tour of the new house last Sunday. Rhonda showed me around while other friends and family members enjoyed snacks and time together in the kitchen.

The house has an open floor plan, with a living room, kitchen and dining area all readily accessible when one enters the front door. It features three bedrooms — a master bedroom and a room for each of the two daughters who still live at home. The girls’ rooms each feature one wall covered in chalkboard paint to serve as an outlet for their creativity. The eldest daughter, displaying good humor about a difficult year, had “Exit” written in chalk above her door, with the words “In case of fire” stripped down the side.

The floors throughout the home have the look of barn siding — a feature Rhonda said was chosen because they believed it wouldn’t show as much wear and tear as carpet or a shiny surface might. That decision was made with the presence of children and grandchildren in mind.

The basement is a very large, open space that still needs some finishing touches. Rhonda said it is yet to be determined whether that area will become a rec room or a man cave. Some furnishings remain to be added to other areas as well, but Rhonda is just happy to have a place to call home once more.

After standing by and watching as their home burned, I, too, am very happy for the Carkhuff family. It was heart wrenching to look on as my neighbors experienced such loss and sorrow, though it was a relief to know that no one had been hurt.

So, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the Carkhuffs back to our little village and to remind our readers to appreciate all that they have at home. Any member of the Carkhuff family can tell you that it all could be lost in an instant.