by Pat Peterson
Published: Mon, November 24, 2008 - 6:17 pm CST
With a heavy heart, Roy Neely showed us what's left of his in-laws house. A house fire claimed the lives of Lamar and Dottie Ward Sunday night in the Allentown community in Santa Rosa County. The elderly couple was a special part of Neely's life for decades.
"Even though it's a sad situation, they're in a better place," says Neely. "We'll just hang on to what's left behind, their legacy, their children, their respect. When I leave this world if I have half the respect this man had, I think I'd have done something."
Volunteers from five fire departments responded to the Ward residence, but the men were no match for the blaze. The first firefighter on the scene was one of the couple's sons.
Mr. Ward was a deacon at a local church, in fact, he had just gotten home from choir practice when the fire started.
"My heart was just broken because Lamar and Dottie were just such good people and they were noted pillars of not only our church but of our community," says Pastor Brian Stephens of Calvary Baptist Church. Stephens says he'll miss his friends but says the Ward's are now in a better place.
"God is a God of love, he's a God of mercy and he's a just God. We don't always understand his way but in a large way, the fact that he called them both home together speaks largely of his mercy and love."
The Ward's were married for more than 52 years. They are survived by five children, more than a dozen grandchildren and several great-grandchildren.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
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