Saturday,  August 23, 2008 at 10:30 AM changed our life forever.  We happened to be at the Las Cruces down town mall shopping at the farmers market when we received a call from our neighbor asking if anyone was home.  I told him no, he then told me to "hurry home because your house is on fire".  While driving home looking in the direction of our house  we could see billowing clouds of black smoke rising upwards.  Upon arriving at our home I was greeted by my neighbor who told me the fire chief needed to talk to me.  It took 6 fire trucks to put out the blaze and place it under control.  We lost everything, furniture, photos, clothing, three automobiles and old memories that we had collected throughout our married life.

Throughout the blaze we received calls from friends asking if they could help or do anything for us, but it wasn't until I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around to see the red cross that it finally occurred to me that we had no place to stay. 

The following day our  family went back home to try to find any salvageable items but had no luck.  Our next door neighbor saw us at the house and brought us a book of house plans.  He said to pick a plan and that he would draft it.  He said, "the sooner the better, don't procrastinate and do nothing".  We selected a plan within a week.
A few weeks later we received a call from Bart Phillips with Phillips Homes.  He told me he wanted to help us rebuild our home and if we paid all the subcontractors and suppliers that he would not charge for his time.  He wanted to give back to the community by helping us build a new home.

A couple of weeks later we meet with Bart and took him up on his offer.  It's nice to know that there are still people who are willing to lend a hand in a time of need.  It has given us a positive prospective on life.  Our new home is complete and we have become very good friends with Bart and his wife Tracy.  We are so greatful to him for helping at a time when we really needed help.  Without his help we would not have accomplished as much as we did.
Bart did an excellent job building our home.  He used top of the line materials and recommended changes as needed.  This home could very well have been entered into the "Showcase of Homes".  This is definitely not a house, this is a home that anyone would be proud of.

Sincerely,

Robert and Joyce Martin