Jeanna Duerscherl | The Roanoke Times

Heather and Jason Gibson watch their children Shane, 7, and Aiden, 3, play in the living room at a Residence Inn, where they are living after their Roanoke County home was destroyed in a May 2 fire.

Jeanna Duerscherl | The Roanoke Times

First-grader Shane Gibson's picture of himself at the hotel hangs on the hotel fridge next to school tests and cards from friends.

Eric Brady | The Roanoke Times

The fire destroyed many precious mementos such as Heather Gibson's wedding dress. The Gibsons' cats also died in the fire.

Editor's note: Fire destroyed Jason and Heather Gibson's home May 2. This online version has been corrected to fix that error.

All that remains of Jason and Heather Gibson's Roanoke County home of five years are a few damaged belongings and the charred husk of a building.

"Everything we had is gone," Heather Gibson said. "I keep thinking it's a dream."

The Gibsons and their children Shane, 7, and Aiden, 3, lost their house May 2 in a blaze that took firefighters an hour to get under control. Heather Gibson, Aiden and pet ferret Mika escaped from the house along with a family friend, though the family's two Siamese cats, Stitch and Sadler, died. Jason Gibson and Shane were on a fishing trip at the time.

Many sentimental items were incinerated, including Heather Gibson's wedding dress. Among the few possessions salvaged: a yearbook documenting the high school sweethearts' junior year at Patrick Henry High School.

"Everything else is ashes," Jason Gibson said.

The family is now staying in a hotel paid for by their renters' insurance. With two bedrooms and bathrooms, a kitchenette and a small living area, they have tried to make the hotel suite feel like home. Shane and Aiden drew pictures to hang on the refrigerator, and the family tries to eat together every night, even if that means fast food instead of a home-cooked dinner.

"We're just trying to make it work," Heather Gibson said. "My littlest one, he don't like to see me cry. But I've cried so much, I don't have any more tears."

Aiden had never stayed in a hotel before.

"He don't understand," Gibson said. "He just wants to go home."

A week after the fire, the Clearbrook community is rallying behind the Gibsons as they struggle to rebuild their lives.

At Clearbrook Elementary, where Shane is in the first grade, students, parents and staff have begun raising money to help offset the family's expenses, Principal Karen Pendleton said. When Shane's teacher explained what had happened to his class, several students even offered to bring in their own toys. Other classmates made cards for the family that now decorate the hotel suite, including one that reads: "I am sory that hose brne dawe."

The Gibsons said they are grateful for the support that friends, neighbors and even apparent strangers have given them.

"I didn't realize they could be so caring," Heather Gibson said. "We never take charity. We always help everybody else out."

The family is trying to return to some sense of normalcy despite their loss. Thinking about where they will live next, Gibson said she hopes for a place "where the kids can still be country kids."

In the meantime, a local apartment complex where her husband often repairs floors is helping the family find a furnished apartment to stay in while they search for a new home. They hope to move to the temporary apartment as early as Monday.

"[The complex] has been great," Jason Gibson said. "Just great."

The Starlight Lane house is considered a total loss, according to Roanoke County Fire and Rescue spokeswoman Jennifer Conley Sexton. The blaze was sparked by an electrical short and was ruled accidental, she said.

The couple said the fire has reminded them of what's important.

"What we lost were things," Heather Gibson said. "But I have my kids -- my family."