A Wewahitchka couple who has dedicated their lives to caring for children have suffered a huge loss.

Former judge David Taunton and his wife Abigail have welcomed more than 300 kids into their homes over the last three decades. But this morning a fire completely destroyed one of those homes.

News Channel 7's Vanessa Nguyen shows us the remarkable way they are handling the tragedy and the overwhelming impact they've made on their community.

Flames still rise above the ashes as smoke spreads through the air.

This was once a large two-story home that had 34 kids in it at one time.

Biological son, Daniel Taunton tells News Channel Seven, "A lot of people put a lot of blood, sweat and tears in it."

Fortunately, David Taunton and his wife were vacationing in Tennessee and no one was hurt in the fire.

But words can't describe how they felt as they drove up.

Tears and hugs went around as more family and friends came together throughout the day...reflecting on all the cherished moments they had in this place.

What you see behind --more than a house that's just burned down.

The Tauntons have welcomed more than 300 kids into their lives and home. And they say even though 30 years of memories are built within these walls, it's still only sticks and stones compared to what they've been given.

"It's sticks and stones and we can get more sticks and stones and put them together."

David Taunton still holds firm to his faith that this was meant to happen.

Father, David Taunton says, "The Bible says all things work together for the good of those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose."

He says his children are probably taking the loss of their home much harder than he is.

"A lot of sentiment attached to it ...a lot of hard work...how something that took so long to build, so much tender-loving care can just go up in smoke just shows us how fragile life is...how much we depend on the powers that are higher than we are."

But the Tauntons are determined not to let this affect their life-long mission of continuing to provide shelter and care for children.

The State Fire Marshall's office is still investigating the cause of the fire.

Damage was confined to the main home on the Taunton's 80-acre spread, which includes separate group homes for girls and boys and other buildings.

As for the Tauntons, they plan on taking a few days off with their extended family before deciding what to do next.