POST FALLS — Almost one year to the day that their family home burned down, Lynn and Steve Rinker, their daughter, Amanda Bray, and grandson Kingston, delivered gifts of thanks to the team at Kootenai County Fire and Rescue Station No. 3 in Post Falls.

On Dec. 27, 2020, the Rinkers woke at 6:30 a.m. to flames everywhere. The catastrophic blaze destroyed everything they owned, while the Rinker family narrowly escaped with their lives.

It was almost a year before their home was rebuilt and they moved back in. The blaze had burned so hot and fast that the fire department used the Rinker home as a practice site for demonstrations, Lynn said. The cause of the fire was never officially identified.

Following the last Christmas holiday, Lynn contacted Chief Christopher Way to arrange drop off of groceries, snacks and reading materials for the firemen.

“We were trying to show them some appreciation,” Lynn said. “The firemen had checked on us constantly. They cared for us.”

Many community members provided support for months as the family got back on their feet. But it was the firemen who responded first.

Bearing packages, the Rinkers visited the firehouse on 16th Avenue and gave them to the same crew responsible for extinguishing the December 2020 blaze.

“The firemen were so bashful,” Lynn said.

After the fire crew unloaded the goodies, they reminisced over the loss and the Rinkers' recovery after the fire. Needing to conduct the daily testing of the firefighting lift anyway, they offered to include the Rinkers.

Eleven-year-old Kingston bravely volunteered to ride the lift 100 feet into the air and even operated the controls.

“I’ve been to a fire station before,” Kingston said. “But I haven’t done that before.”