Agafton, Botoșani County, Romania, July 7, 2026
Photo: basilica.ro An icon that survived a house fire is drawing support for a family of eight in Botoșani County, Romania, after firefighters found the image of the Christ Child largely untouched amid the ashes.
The fire destroyed a home in the village of Agafton, that had taken the family 15 years to build. Among the wreckage, firefighters with the Botoșani Emergency Situations Inspectorate (ISU) recovered an icon, painted by the children’s father, in which the face of the infant Christ remained undamaged by the flames, reports the Basilica News Agency.
“Sometimes, even after the greatest disaster, something remains to remind us not to lose hope,” ISU Botoșani representatives wrote in a Facebook post, adding that the image is a reminder that hope, faith, and the strength to carry on can survive even the hardest trials.
Photo: BotosaniNews
Presbytera Anamaria Macuc, wife of Fr. Marian Macuc, parish priest of Pacea Church in Botoșani, has known the family for years and shared their story online, calling the icon “a miracle amid the ashes.”
She noted that the fire consumed the work and hope of two devout parents and their five sons, the youngest just two years old, while the mother is expecting the couple’s sixth child. The family, she said, had never asked for anything and worked with faith and love, brick by brick, to build a home now lost.
She has appealed for donations of money or construction materials to help the family rebuild.
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How to help
Bank transfer:
IBAN RO85BTRLRONCRT0288072801
Account holder Dascălu Roxana Simona
Bank: Banca Transilvania.
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