Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers.

Today is a day to spend with families and friends recounting our many blessings.  Around Davidson’s Thanksgiving column focuses on one Davidson family feeling especially thankful this day:  the Johnsons of River Run.  The date of October 27 will always be a grim reminder of what the family lost when their home burned to the ground, but this date will also be a time for each family member to count blessings. 

A ‘WHOOSH,’ FOLLOWED BY THE ROOF CAVING IN

How often we hear that phrase “for our many blessings, we are thankful.” This Thanksgiving, those words take on a new meaning in the story of the Johnson family. Parents, Robin and Emily Johnson, and their three children, Erin, Lachlan and Jake, with their family pet, Huckleberry, survived a house fire one month ago. That fire quickly raced through and destroyed their River Run home on Craggy Meadows Drive, perhaps due to faulty chimney insulation. (See our coverage of the fire, “River Run house fire.”)

Whatever the cause, the family today stands strong. The house can be rebuilt. Many mementos are gone but in 10-year-old Jake’s words, “We lost lots of stuff that we now have found we really did not need.” To give our readers an idea of the strength of this family, Around Davidson sat down with the children last weekend to hear how things have been in the past month and to catch a glimpse of an exciting project in their future.

The Johnson kids (from left): Jake, Lachlan (holding Huckleberry) and Erin. Their dad told them the night of their house fire that "the most important thing was their health and safety."

Erin, 16, Lachlan, 14, and Jake spoke at length about the evening of the fire. Mom, Emily, was out of town and Dad, Robin, was in charge. Instead of assigning an early bedtime, Robin asked the children to put on their pajamas and gather in the family room for a mini-jam session of guitar music and singing. Enjoying the warmth of a wood fire and family time together, they suddenly heard a loud “whoosh” sound around 10:30 p.m. Thinking it was water running, they checked upstairs and realized the noise came from the attic. Robin pulled down the attic stair to encounter heavy smoke. Without hesitation, he corralled the children and dog outside to the curb before calling 911. Moments after fleeing the burning home, the roof collapsed.

As they relived the event, one could see in the children’s faces how glad they were that Dad had been lenient with bedtime that evening. Otherwise they would have been sleeping in upstairs bedrooms, making safe exit from the burning home more difficult.

With the house burning behind them and a light drizzle beginning to soak through their p.j.’s, the children crossed the cul-de-sac to the waiting arms of their grandma, Suzanne Hurley, and her husband, Jack. How thankful they were to have family just feet away!

When the firemen had the blaze under control, Dad Robin gathered Erin, Lachlan and Jake to explain that they could replace most of their material possessions but the most important thing was their health and safety. For this they were truly blessed.

Robin also explained that life would get back to normal the next morning.   They arose early and arrived at 7:30 a.m. at Kohl’s, still wearing their pajamas, to shop for the barest essentials and get to school on time – which they did.

A TEMPORARY HOME AND A NEW FAMILY BUSINESS

We all know that news in Davidson travels fast, both good news and bad. In this case, the bad news of the devastating fire brought neighbors, friends and church members to action. The owners of a home for sale across the street took the property off the market and offered it to the Johnsons for as long as they needed. River Run neighbors and Davidson United Methodist Church church members donated the furnishings for the entire home, including oriental rungs, exercise equipment, kitchen utensils and even porch furniture. Woodlawn School classmates brought clothes they knew would fit Erin, Lachlan and Jake. After 11 days of living with Grandma Su-Su and Jack Hurley, the Johnsons moved into their “new” home – scarcely skipping a beat. That is the power of church and community for which we, in Davidson, are thankful daily.

Instead of fretting over what they've lost, the Johnson kids are busy with a new business, "Flipoutz"

The Johnsons are an active family. Their home in ashes does not slow them down for long. Robin is Executive Vice President for business development at Rousch Fenway Racing in Concord. Emily is a real estate attorney who has devoted time recently to a new family business – “Flipoutz” – or coins with messages or pictures worn on armbands and traded with friends – the concept of which came from the children’s brainstorming on a ride home from the beach two and one half years ago.

To launch this new fledgling business venture, the family traveled to Washington, D.C. last month for the debut of their Flipoutz product at the National Tween Girl Summit. They also presented Flipoutz at last week’s Southern Living Show. Most sales are now online at www.flipoutz.com but the children are confident the armbands and coins will soon be available in area stores. A novel idea from an organized and energetic family whose enthusiasm was not diminished by the fire since the contracts, patent papers and boxes full of “Flipoutz” survived the fire stored in and adjacent to the garage.

The Johnsons are actively promoting their new product but also making time for their favorite activities. Erin loves music and theatre. She is a member of the Charlotte Children’s Theatre Teen Ensemble Group. Lachlan loves horses and barrel racing but also has a knack for filming as her recent documentary placed first in a NC competition. Jake is a working actor playing the role of Lucas on “Army Wives” on Lifetime. When filming, he takes weekends in Charleston, SC, to fulfill his studio obligations.

Indeed as we think today about the many blessings we have, we certainly reflect on so many reasons to be thankful. For the Johnson family, they look back on a month filled with emotion and heartbreak, but also a time for learning what is important. In the children’s words they are most thankful for their family’s safety, for loving relatives close-by, and for the outpouring of kindness from our community. At their young ages, they have learned many of life’s lessons already: that it is not material “stuff” that makes a difference but the joy of family gathered this Thanksgiving Day.

Send us your news

Have news for Brenda? Write to her at hbarger@bellsouth.net.

RELATED COVERAGE

Oct. 27, 2009, “Evening blaze destroys home in River Run.”