One Altadena couple has found a welcome bright spot amid devastating recent loss.
Stephanie Raynor and Brian McShea lost their Altadena bungalow in the Eaton Fire that ravaged the Southern California foothills community earlier this month, but now they have something to celebrate as they begin an unexpected new chapter – their engagement!
Unbeknownst to Stephanie, Brian had been planning to propose in February and already had a ring hidden inside his desk before they evacuated on Jan. 7.
Sadly, the entire home had burned down by the next day and Brian noted to Access Hollywood how the task of returning to the property together in the aftermath proved daunting.
“We started that day in pretty low spirits,” he shared. “Navigating the National Guard checkpoints to collect the PPE, buying colanders from Target to use as makeshift sifters.”
Brian said that he knew he wanted to look for the ring right away, but he was reluctant to get his hopes up.
“Honestly I thought the gold would have melted and that maybe I’d find the stone,” he explained.
Much to his surprise, however, he discovered the entire thing intact relatively early in their search.
“After about 30 minutes, I picked up a dirty ring and there was the diamond attached to it!” he recalled.
Though Brian hadn’t expected to pop the question that day, let alone that exact moment, he reflected on realizing the opportunity had presented itself in a way he could never have predicted.
“I was already on my knees, so I just asked right then,” he said. “It’s funny, I thought so much about how I was going to propose, and how perfect it needed to be, but when the time came it was just as simple as picking up a ring and asking her.”
That wasn’t the pair’s only stroke of luck that day. A passerby named Shante happened to approach them with water after the proposal and ended up taking Brian and Stephanie’s first engagement photos, which they shared in a joint Instagram post.
Their story picked up immediate traction online and Brian expressed the gratitude he and Stephanie have for the delighted response they’ve gotten from fellow Altadenans and beyond.
“We’re happy the community feels our joy; rummaging through the rubble was such a draining experience, but the ring made it into such a positive day,” he told Access. “We are sure there are other diamonds for our neighbors to find in their own ashes; it just takes a lot of energy to dig through.”
Though it remains unclear when the areas most impacted by the recent wildfires across Los Angeles will be safely habitable again, Brian and Stephanie say they hope to return to Altadena as soon as they can. In the meantime, they are thankful to have such a special final memory of their former home.
“We envisioned many years in our little bungalow, but we are happy to say at least we got engaged there,” Brian added.
An estimated 9,400 structures were reportedly destroyed in the Eaton Fire, with the Palisades Fire claiming at least 6,800 more. To date, 29 people are confirmed to have died.
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