Behind the Headlines

Much like the Rourke and Harris families, Bruce has learned that it only takes a moment for your world to come crashing down.

For Bruce, the moment came on a beautiful fall day, minutes after finishing lunch with Cindy, his wife of 20 years, and Chelsea, their adopted daughter.

On his way out the door, he kissed Cindy and Chelsea goodbye and left for work. Before he got far, Bruce realized he had forgotten something at home and turned the car around. As he got closer to his neighborhood, he noticed a thick cloud of black smoke hovering on the horizon.

"I thought it was a house fire," Bruce says. "When I got to the intersection of our complex, I noticed smoke was coming from a car crash. Something came over me. I just had a feeling that this was not good."

When Bruce arrived on the scene, he saw his wife's minivan in flames.

"The last thing I remember was [the van] exploded," Bruce says. "I remember freaking out, and then, all of a sudden, I tried to gather my thoughts and started looking around to see if they were out of the vehicle. Within seconds, I realized there's no way anyone could survive that."