Two weeks after losing all their possessions to fire, the tables in the Muse-Calley family’s room at the Sunset Hotel are piled with toys and donations.

For days, strangers brought them hot meals. Others provided new books and groceries.

When a $1,000 gift card to Target appeared, “I was so happy, I started crying,” said Sarah Muse, a mother of four.

Now, what the family needs most of all is a new home.

Sarah, her husband Robby Calley, sons Noah, 4, Robert, 8, Kaleb, 15, daughter Kylan, and mother Judy, became homeless when a fire destroyed their apartment home Monday, Sept. 27, in Snoqualmie.

The catastrophe came two months after Robby broke both his hands in a fall off their apartment balcony.

“I was doing everything for him,” Sarah said. “He’s supposed to be in bed all the time.”

On the day of the fire, Sarah had helped Robby eat, and they were taking a nap when the blaze broke out.

“We were sleeping,” Sarah said. “All of a sudden I heard Noah screaming, a scream I had never heard before.”

She flew into her son Kaleb’s room, where the little boy told her, “I’m sorry, mom. I’m so sorry.”

Noah had found a cigarette lighter in the room and was playing with it in a closet. The fire quickly spread up the clothes and into the shelves and attic.

Sarah and Judy’s efforts to put it out were to no avail. The fire raged through the entire apartment.

“It was unbelievable,” said Robby. He rushed downstairs to make sure Noah and Judy were out of the building, and noticed Sarah was missing. When he went back upstairs, the rooms were filled with black smoke.

“I couldn’t see,” Robby said. He managed to hunch over and find breathable air near the ground. Then Robby saw Sarah’s shirt and grabbed her.

Sarah was trying to find her purse, which contained her cash.

“The ceiling was falling down around me, but I didn’t realize it,” she said.

Robby told her to leave the purse.

“No, I’ve got to feed my baby,” Sarah replied.

“All this material stuff is not worth it,” he said. “Let’s get out of here.”

They escaped the burning room, Sarah managing to save just four of her many baby pictures.

In the aftermath of the fire, the family was helped by the Red Cross, which paid for a motel room for two weeks. They are now looking for a new rental, big enough for their family, that fits their budget. Extended family and friends are searching, but prospects have been slim on such short notice. Sarah is hoping she can receive some assistance from the Snoqualmie Tribe.

Sarah has been touched by the help the family has been given from local churches. Her oldest son attends youth programs at Snoqualmie United Methodist Church, and she is looking to become more involved with a church family.

“The only way we’re going to get better than where we are is through God,” Sarah said.

• A donation account has been set up in Kaleb’s name at Sno Falls Credit Union. The Snoqualmie United Methodist Church is also taking donations for the family. To learn more, call Sno Falls Credit Union at (425) 888-4004 or the Methodist Church at (425) 888-1697.