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After Much Suffering And Loss, She Moved To A Tiny House To Rebuild Her Life


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This is the story of Carol and her tiny house. She has been through a lot, more than anyone should ever have to in one life, losing her home, son, and pets to the camp fires in Paradise, California. This is the story and tour of her tiny home on wheels thanks to the Tiny Home Tours YouTube Channel.

I’m a Camp Fire Survivor from Paradise Ca. Living a new and blessed life in Oregon!

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After Insurmountable Losses To Fires In Paradise California, She Rebuilds Her Life With A Tiny House…

This is Carol’s Big Life in a Tiny House…

She’s a camp fire survivor.

She lost her home, her son, and her pets to the fire. Can you imagine having to overcome something like that?

VIDEO – After Suffering Loss She Moved To A Tiny House

 

Carol is an incredible human. She’s maintained a positive attitude after experiencing so much loss… More than anyone should experience in a lifetime. She lost her son and every pet but her dog in the fire in Paradise, CA. Soon after she went through a divorce and the dog she saved from the fire passed 1 month after they escaped. She has managed to put her life back together in such a beautiful way. She hired a builder to build her a tiny home and is currently living with her 1 year old Golden Retriever on the coast of Oregon in a tiny home village. She hopes to one day purchase land and be completely off-grid.

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Our big thanks to Allison of Tiny Home Tours/YouTube for sharing!🙏

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Alex

Alex is a contributor and editor for TinyHouseTalk.com and the always free Tiny House Newsletter. He has a passion for exploring and sharing tiny homes (from yurts and RVs to tiny cabins and cottages) and inspiring simple living stories. We invite you to send in your story and tiny home photos too so we can re-share and inspire others towards a simple life too. Thank you!
{ 30 comments… add one }
  • e.a.f.
    March 2, 2020, 12:57 pm

    What a wonderful story and it truly inspiring. Having a place to call your own after such destruction and tragedy is important and a tiny home provides some basic needs to give you some “balance” back in your life.

    May you and your new pet have many happy years in your new home.

    Thanks to Carol for sharing her story. The pictures are wonderful because they reflect how we all live, not a photo op, but depicting true life.

    Thank you also to the blog also.

  • Sherry
    March 2, 2020, 1:29 pm

    Thank you so much for sharing your story, may blessing always come your way for you surely deserve some. I love yr tiny home, would suit me just fine. Love the bed area for that would be my favorite space.

  • Diana
    March 2, 2020, 2:55 pm

    Carol, love your home. I agree about stairs and tub but I wouldn’t take out the daybed as I adore them and most likely would sleep there, lol. I would change a few things like gas instead of electric and solar as you said…but your place is adorable and I hope you are able to find the property you want. Although due to so much loss in such a short time maybe you want to stay close to other people at the moment…best of luck with your life. Would you please tell me the name of your tiny house builder….thanks

    • James D.
      March 3, 2020, 1:20 am

      Blue Sky Tiny Homes LLC (Evansville, IN)… It’s their Sparrow model…

  • March 2, 2020, 8:13 pm

    What Carol has gone through reminds me of another woman who has sufferred quite a number of tragedies herself. Checkout her story at:
    https://nomadfornature.wordpress.com/2017/12/07/a-year-without-a-kitchen-sink-introduction/

  • Doreen McNary
    March 2, 2020, 8:54 pm

    Your story is inspirational to me I dream of having a tiny house off grid.
    My condolences to you.

  • Joe3
    March 2, 2020, 9:25 pm

    Very nice Tiny House . Thank you for the tour .
    Living small since the 80’s, I agree, it is a great way of Life ..
    I hope you get to follow your dreams ..

  • Marsha Cowan
    March 2, 2020, 10:24 pm

    Wow! What an amazing lady and wonderful story of courage and healing. I realize the healing is still going on, but hope that this tiny home can “hug” you and give you peace and rest to begin again. God bless your journey.

  • Kathy
    March 2, 2020, 11:47 pm

    Carol, I love your tiny and the life you have rebuilt for yourself! You have so much inside that just *works* for you, but when you started talking about being a mini maker, I was just blown away! That’s what I do as well, and I have been afraid I could never fit all my supplies and collection in a tiny! Now I know that I can! I currently live in a home my son bought for me, in Fairfield CA (about 3 hours from Paradise) but I have seriously been jonesing for a tiny for about 15 years. I am so inspired by you just going on, with difficulty I am sure, and living the tiny life!! I will come visit you on your website if you will come to my website, http://www.scaledesigns.com. We have lots to talk about!!

    • Eric
      April 4, 2020, 5:31 am

      Hi Kathy, as a non American, could you please explain what Jonesing means?

      tia

      • Kathy
        April 4, 2020, 8:00 pm

        Tia, “Jonesing” for something means you want a thing very much. And that is show I feel about having a tiny house!! I also speak some French, and I totally understand how hard it is to understand the slang! I think its origin is actually in the slang of drug users, but its common elsewhere these days too.

  • Kathy
    March 3, 2020, 7:16 pm

    Carol, your tiny is charming…..I know the Sparrow model from Blue Sky, but you have done so much with it to make it your own. I live in Fairfield CA (about 3 hours I guess from Paradise) and having seen nightly news views of the fire, I am very moved by your story. How difficult it must have been to come out this end of such sadness. Your little house and your beautiful dog must have been, and no doubt still are, major help in coming round to a new version of normal. I was blown away though when you mentioned that you are a Mini person! I am as well – http://www.scaledesigns.com — and have wanted a tiny home for 10-12 years, but thought I could never move my workshop into such a small place. But I see that it is possible!!! I tried to look you up on Etsy, but couldn’t do so by using your name. Maybe you have a shop name?? I would love to come visit you and talk Tiny Houses. And Mini ones as well!!!! My best to you!

    • James D.
      March 5, 2020, 12:49 am

      Go to etsy… /people/auntmimm

  • Theresa Perdue
    March 4, 2020, 11:45 am

    Wow! I so get her. She could be me.

  • Steveinsandiego
    March 4, 2020, 6:53 pm

    Well, folks, pardon me for expressing an iota of incredulity. Every tiny house story I read, someone, somehow, has overcome supposedly significant odds, to be rescued by the tiny house industry.
    I have an uneasy feeling that many of the stories are fabricated not by commonplace citizens, but rather by the tiny house manufacturers in order to “make sales”. I don’t recall stories about ANY San Diego county residents who conquered unbelievable odds and are now living happily ever after in a secluded corner of a state or national park, and for free.
    As far as I understand it, houses on wheels cannot be situated permanently…they’re similar to trailers, and must be moved every so often, from one lease/rent park to another. I am equally unaware of any land subdivision selling tiny lots for prices low and middle income folks can afford. In other words, too much story without anywhere near enough facts. Don’t misunderstand: I’m fascinated with the idea, but I seriously doubt the fruition all these stories imply.
    Jmhofwiw 😉

    • James D.
      March 5, 2020, 1:43 am

      You can doubt all you want, doesn’t change that they’re true. People have struggled and overcome obstacles throughout history. It has little to do with any industry but the ability of people to find ways to overcome their burdens and obstacles in life.

      While there’s plenty of facts if you know where to look… Like THOWs can be ADU’s in California, which means they can be permanent… There’s also growing adoption of Appendix Q for the 2018 IRC ICC update for building codes for tiny houses on foundations but now they’re also starting to apply it to THOWs. Like there’s a town in Texas that is presently working to establish a tiny house community where the THOWs are simply tied down and then inspected to show they meet code. If that all works out then other municipalities could opt to do the same and have THOWs recognized the same as foundation built homes…

      There’s also many things people are doing unofficially… For every story you may have heard, there’s hundreds more you haven’t and may never hear about but they still happen…

      You don’t have to have faith in any industry… Just in people!

      • Brett
        March 6, 2020, 8:17 am

        We shouldn’t need permission from anyone, especially any government entity in the US, to live how and where we want to. All of their rules and regulations regarding tiny homes(and anything else) is a violation of our constitutional rights. See US code 18 section 242

    • Alison
      March 6, 2020, 12:21 am

      Consider, Steveinsandiego, that the happy stories are the ones that make the news, and the not-so-happy tiny house attempts are just not being published (who wants to read that?). I, too, am put off sometimes by how rosy it all seems: build or buy a charming tiny dwelling and live happily ever after. But in fact, in many cases it does work out well. Tiny houses will not fix homelessness, they often cost a lot, and one needs a place to put them, which is probably the biggest issue in a place like coastal California and other expensive areas. But people are making them work! Sometimes for regular living, but also for vacation homes, travel, guests in the backyard. They are fun! Many are promoted by manufacturers, but many others are carefully home made. I’m sure some people have built or bought them and regret the expense, but the people who enjoy their tiny houses do like to share their joy.

  • Kathy
    March 4, 2020, 8:08 pm

    Your attack on a person who did actually surmount unbelievable losses is totally uncalled for. If she finds solace in her tiny house, who are you, Steveinsandiego, to point ridicule at her? If you don’t like tiny houses, why are you reading about them? You are entitled to your opinion of course but not entitled to trumpet it as a Troll at a woman who has lost everything in her life including her family. Be ashamed sir.

    • sheila
      June 23, 2020, 2:45 pm

      Kathy,
      You are awesome. Nothing for me to add in a comment. My Brother in Law lived there and he had moved when the fire happened. He lose 4 dear friends. Carol is real. I recall reading about her in a article. Not on here. Some people are just cruel and it is hard to over look. You have compassion and spoke beautifully. I agree. Was going to say something but saw your reply. Now I don’t need too.

      • Kathy
        June 23, 2020, 3:44 pm

        sheila — thank you for your kind words and support. I rarely speak out like that, but in this case I felt obliged to wack-a-troll. LOL.

  • christine
    March 7, 2020, 8:07 am

    nice home Carol awesome so encouraging!
    was wondering about the name of the appliances the micro/confection oven and the mini split
    all the best on youre new life and many many yrs of joy

  • Rusty
    March 11, 2020, 7:25 pm

    Carol, I love your sweet home, but most of all I love your attitude. Your an inspiration, I am sure for many who have suffered tragedies in their life.

  • Fran Marie
    April 20, 2020, 9:24 pm

    This is one of my all time favorite tiny houses. Carol is an inspiration to me. I don’t know if I could put one foot in front of the other like she did. The house is just beautiful. I don’t know her, but I am so very proud of her!

    • Natalie C. McKee
      April 21, 2020, 2:23 pm

      She has done an amazing job!

  • Vickie
    June 23, 2020, 9:38 pm

    Your have created a beautiful and cute Oasis for yourself. Thank you for the inspiration Carol 🙂

  • Lily
    June 29, 2020, 8:09 pm

    So glad she is finding healing and comfort. I’m wondering where in Oregon this tiny home village is. I’m looking for a place too.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      June 30, 2020, 2:22 pm

      Here’s one in Portland! http://www.simplyhomecommunity.org/

      • Lily
        June 30, 2020, 9:57 pm

        Thank you! That looks interesting. They’re not taking anymore people there, but hopefully more communities will be opening.

  • Rita Woodfork
    March 8, 2021, 5:52 pm

    I think you are so brave after such a tremendous loss. I too, recently experienced a tremendous loss and I am so sad. But your video was inspiring and I am thinking about moving from my apartment to a tiny home.
    Be Blessed,
    Rita.

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