“We had holidays, family get togethers and stuff like that, you know. We would all get crammed in there,” Bosko said of the Davey Hill Road home in Pittsfield, built in 1900 and purchased by the family in 1930.

His father, Stephen Bosko, was born inside the home — situated on a dairy farm and known as a frequent place students were taken on field trips decades ago.

“It wasn’t a super huge house, but it was home,” Mitchell Bosko said.

His wife, Kate, was awakened around 1 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 28, just after his father had gone to bed. She looked out of the window and realized “something was not quite right.”

“She opened our bedroom door and then she heard the smoke detector going off and then she seen the smoke and stuff,” Bosko said. “She realized what was going on.”

Bosko told his wife to get out through the front door while he went to get his father. Her escape out the front door may have actually fueled the flames by introducing oxygen into the room.

“It kind of made it unsafe for us to come down the stairs,” Bosko said.

Instead, the pair climbed out of a second-story window and made it down the ladder of an old windmill that was previously used to pump water. Thankfully, the windmill was located next to the home.

With their phone still inside, Kate headed for a neighbor’s house in one direction to get help while Stephen Bosko took off in the other direction.

Mitchell Bosko stayed and tried to rescue the family’s dogs still inside. Unfortunately, two of the dogs died in the fire.

Bosko, 31, said the last week has been tough on the family. He grew up in the home while his father had resided there his entire life. His wife also has been struggling and remains in shock over the blaze.

“It was obviously devastating and it’s just like, ‘Oh no, what are we going to do?’ Luckily, we’ve had a lot of great friends that came and helped us, got us situated for a few days,” he said. “It was definitely overwhelming and just shock and disbelief — one thing I never thought was going to ever happen.”

Firefighters from several departments responded to the family’s home. All that remains of the property now is charred debris.

The cause of the fire could not be determined.

“We are very thankful; the community definitely stepped in and helped us out with a bunch of stuff,” Bosko said.

A spaghetti dinner benefit will be held Sunday from 3-7 p.m. at the Youngsville Fire Department, 29 Fireman Dr., Youngsville. Meals cost $13 each, and the event also includes a basket raffle.

All proceeds from Sunday’s fundraiser will go toward the Bosko family to rebuild their home.

A GoFundMe drive (https://gofund.me/fca2d252 ) has been set up as well.