Volunteers Help Finish Fallen Esperanza Firefighter's Home

View: Esperanza Fire Slideshow A firefighter killed in October's Esperanza Wildfire was building a home for his family in Idyllwild before he died. Now Habitat for Humanity is helping to finish the job. But more help is still needed. Fire Captain Mark Loutzenhiser wanted a better home for his wife and five children to live in. He started re-building his home last summer, but never got a chance to finish it. Despite his death, his dream is slowly coming true. Loutzenhiser lost his life battling the Esperanza Fire. The 44-year-old U.S. Forest Service firefighter and four others died when they were overcome by flames. Now, Pat Boss, a close family friend, and others are doing their best to make sure Loutzenhiser's dream turns into a reality. "His twin boys were living in the living room in bunk beds the whole eight years. It was very tight, one bath for five kids, for him and his wife. He was very strong about saying ???hey, I got to do something for my family, they can't live like this.'" Habitat for Humanity is helping finish the job. Allen Jones, the organization's project manager, says the home is now 70% complete, but in order to carry out the job by April, the organization desperately needs skilled volunteers. "The town of Idyllwild has been great with volunteers, everybody here has volunteered some time or another . . . I need people with experience installing plank cites. I basically need a journeyman carpenter." Boss says the Loutzenhisers are currently renting a house nearby and are dealing with their loss day by day. But they're excited to move into their new five bedroom, two bath home. "Each day they want to come back to their home, they miss their home." "We're very much trying to get Maria and her family into this house as soon as possible." If you'd like to volunteer, you can contact Habitat for Humanity of Riverside at (951) 787-6754. Republished with permission of KESQ-TV. Related Stories: Esperanza Fire Fully Contained Thousands Mourn 5 Fallen Wildfire Heroes California Fire Evacuees Return To Wreckage The Stories Behind The Fallen Firefighters Fire Stations Lower Flags to Honor California Fallen Firefighters Schwarzenegger to Sign Bill Aiding Esperanza LODD Families