Octavio Rodriguez says he will never forget what a man selling life insurance told him.
“Get the insurance, I don’t want to hear you tell me what do I want it for, if it’s not going to happen to me.”
Rodriguez said Saturday morning they left their home on East Los Ebanos as usual, to drop their daughter off at school.
They made a quick stop at the grocery store, that’s when they first heard of the fire.
Rodriguez said, “When we were at the grocery store we received a call from my mother-in-laws house, telling us that their house was on fire, then they told me no it’s not our house it’s your house that’s on fire.”
Rodriguez couldn't believe what was going on in-front of him, fire trucks putting out the blaze, the blaze that damaged everything he owns.
He said it took him a long time to have the things that are now gone.
Rodriguez said, "When you build your castle and it takes you years to build it and in minutes, it's all gone...can you imagine how I fell?
But at the same time, I have the strength to go forward and I know I can do it."
Rodriguez is optimistic his family will overcome this loss. He knows it'll be hard, especially since he earns $300 a week working 7 days.
Rodriguez said he now knows what it means to need. He’s grateful his family was not home, at the time of the fire.
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