By Lillie Jaenchen
HOME TOWN star Erin Napier just shared some devastating news about her, her husband Ben’s and their best friends’ recent renovation project that was going to be an HGTV show.
“After so much celebration last week, today my best friends @malraz, Jim, and @joshuanowell lost their labor of love, their dream, @theheirloom.us hotel in an early morning fire,” Napier posted on Instagram.
Just last week, she announced that she and husband Ben teamed up with their friends Mallorie, Josh and Jim to renovate a “long vacant” building in downtown Laurel, Mississippi, into a boutique hotel.
HGTV planned to share the journey in HOME TOWN: INN THIS TOGETHER.
Tragically, the fire came “Before they ever even welcomed the first guest.”
Related: Ben and Erin Napier Are Officially INN THIS TOGETHER in New Show
“Praise God, no one was inside,” Napier continued.
But the loss was crushing.
“The weight of this reality is hard to put into words,” The Heirloom hotel’s Instagram posted following the fire. “It’s not about the loss of wood, brick, or paint. It’s about the grief we feel for the countless hands that have worked tirelessly over the past year, breathing life back into this 25,000 square foot space. Every hammer swing, every brushstroke, every late night — this building has been a true labor of love.”
Napier shared how she and her friends “held each other and watched while the brave fire fighters from the Laurel FD worked for hours to get it under control.”
“Today feels like a funeral,” she noted. “But I know these people. They won’t give up here.”
“I don’t know what will happen next or if you’ll ever get to see this @hgtv show now. I don’t know much of anything,” she continued.
The friends have seen their community rally around them, though, and they shared how people flooded their phones with messages offering their support.
“Yes, today is heavy, but we still hold our heads up with hope,” The Heirloom said. “We are determined to keep going, whatever it takes. For our neighbors, for our children and theirs, for the generations yet to walk these streets, we will persevere.”
Through the uncertainty, Napier leans on the Lord.
“Pray for my friends and family, please,” she asked her 1.5 million Instagram followers. “It is hard to explain how this reverberates through our town and its progress in many ways. But I know God has a plan for this setback. He always knows the way, even when we don’t.”
As the Napiers and their friends navigate this devastating loss, continue to keep them in your prayers as they decide what comes next.
Read Next: How HGTV’s Erin Napier Seeks God’s Direction
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