California family steadfast faith appeared in the form of a lone statue of the Virgin Mary — untouched by the merciless flames of the wildfires in Southern California — her resilience amid the smoldering ruins led them to sing in praise.
“It was amazing how everything was fried, but the statue of the Virgin Mary and another statue of St. Joseph were in perfect condition,” Peter Halpin, family patriarch, told ‘Fox & Friends Weekend’ on Sunday.
“Obviously, they were a little bit burned out, but we just used that opportunity to pray,” he continued. “Our home is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and all my household members, my extended family, have always been, so we said a prayer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and then we sang that special song that our whole family knows. for decades to the Blessed Virgin, and it was a remarkable thing.”
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A statue of the Virgin Mary has been left standing amid ash and rubble after wildfires destroyed a family’s Southern California home of 37 years. (Jackie Halpin)
According to Halpin, the family “broke the law” by visiting what was left of their home of 37 years last week. When they discovered the deadly Eaton fire had reduced the rest to rubble, they relied on faith, singing hymns alongside their six children and other loved ones in a video that has since been posted on Instagram.
“It was not our intention at all to make this thing go viral,” he continued. “It was mostly just a family thing, but the response from the community was amazing and so genuine.”
Peter’s wife Jackie said she fell to her knees with emotion after her son-in-law snuck up to the house a day earlier, snapping a photo that revealed the statue was still standing.
Then she knew that they had to make a pilgrimage to that place themselves to thank God for the years they had spent there.
Peter and Jackie Halpin (Fox & Friends Weekend)
– That was my intention – she said. “We’re going to pray. We’re going to thank God that we’re safe, and we’ve had a lot of fun over the years. We feel very strongly about the virtue of hospitality, so I just wanted to say a prayer and say, ‘If we can do it again, that would be great.’
“Song [in the video] it was created by itself, so I am just wanted to pray. I just want to be as grateful as I can for what we had.”
Wildfires continue to rage across Southern California with no end in sight, destroying communities and claiming 16 lives so far.
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