Up in Smoke

Classes ended May 7, and Barbara Liebhaber, assistant professor of music, was looking toward a week of exams, grades, and evaluations.

That all dropped way down on her priority list May 8, when her house burned down.

Her teenage son, David, was in the house, heard the fire alarm, smelled smoke, and went out to grab his father, Lou, who was gardening. They tried the fire extinguisher, called 911, and rescued the older of their two dogs, Jake, a 14-year-old Lab/golden retriever.

The fire was too hot and the smoke too thick for them to find Mario, their 10-year-old shepherd/Doberman. “Luckily, the fireman had an infrared camera that they used to find Mario, who was hiding upstairs in a closet,” Barb says.

The family, complete with dogs, lived in the Marriott Residence Inn off Airport Road for two weeks. Then they moved into a condominium at Cedar Creek Farm, Allentown, where they’ll spend at least six months to a year waiting for their house to be rebuilt. The fire, which turned out to be electrical, left it a complete ruin.

“ Our original telephone line [610 366-8915] is active, so people can leave us messages there,” Barb says.

Somehow, while dealing with insurance agents, fire inspectors, and real-estate agents, she managed to give her exams and grade the papers and write those evaluations. Lou, chief operating officer of Lehigh Valley Hospital, went back to work. David finished school.
“ We are all OK—people, dogs. That’s really all that matters,” Barb says. “The rest is just stuff.”