The Upriver fire tore through a residential neighborhood and left more than a dozen families without homes — but for the Moyer family, the moment their lives changed came through a small screen. Watching Ring camera footage from a safe distance, they saw the house where they had lived for two decades consumed by flames.
“It didn’t seem real,” said Andren Moyer, describing the experience of watching the destruction unfold remotely.
A 20-Year Home Gone in Hours
The Moyer family had resided at 5209 N. Mulvaney Court for two decades, raising three sons — Camden, 24, Carson, 23, and Conlin, 19 — in a home that doubled as a hub for music, creativity, and family life. The fire destroyed four homes on Mulvaney Court alone, along with six on North Emerald Lane and two on Columbia Court, bringing the total of destroyed residences in the Upriver fire to more than a dozen.
No one was home when the fire began. Andren, along with her husband Chris and son Carson, returned briefly to retrieve what they could — laptops, cash, passports, instruments, and the family cat, Maui. The rushed visit gave them precious little time. “We had less than five minutes in the house,” Andren said. It was the fourth time this family had faced evacuation due to fire threat, but the first time they did not return to a standing home.
Maui, the family’s cat, did not make it out with them that day. Two days later, however, the cat was spotted alive in a nearby neighborhood — a small piece of good news amid an otherwise devastating week.
A Family Defined by Music
What makes the Moyer family’s loss particularly profound is what the fire consumed beyond furniture and walls. Chris Moyer is an electrical engineer and music teacher who instructs jazz, piano, saxophone, clarinet, and flute. He also serves as assistant director of the MasterClass Big Band. His sons have followed in his musical footsteps: Camden is a saxophonist, Carson is a percussionist who produces and composes original music available on Spotify, and Conlin is pursuing a music degree at Eastern Washington University.
Dozens of instruments and an entire in-home recording studio were lost. Andren’s wedding day pearls — irreplaceable by any measure — were also among the items the fire claimed. Chris and Andren first met at an a cappella competition in 1991, and music has been woven into the fabric of their family ever since. Losing the instruments and studio represents not just financial damage but the destruction of a creative space the family had built over a lifetime together.
The family is currently staying at a home roughly a mile from the site of their destroyed residence as they begin the long process of recovery.
Community Rallies With Benefit Concert
The local music community has quickly mobilized to support the Moyers. A relief concert is scheduled for 6 p.m. Saturday at Hamilton Studio, located at 1427 W. Dean Ave. The MasterClass Big Band, Imagine Jazz Collective, Dues Big Band, and members of the Hot Club of Spokane are all slated to perform. All proceeds from the event will go directly to the Moyer family.
For those unable to attend, an online fundraising campaign has been set up at givesendgo.com to accept additional donations.
What Comes Next
The Moyer family faces a lengthy road to rebuilding — not only their physical home but the musical instruments and creative infrastructure that defined their household. The benefit concert Saturday offers community members a direct way to help offset those losses. For anyone in the region following the aftermath of the Upriver fire, the Moyer family’s story is a reminder of how quickly the irreplaceable can be lost. For broader coverage of fire and emergency news across northern Idaho, readers can follow updates at KootenaiCountyNews.com.