“He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” — Psalm 147:3

FAIRMONT — Fairmont native Stephanie (Theobald) Broughton is finding this true for her own life as she and her children grapple with the untimely loss of her husband, Aaron Broughton, after a tragic accident.The daughter of Fairmont residents Gary and Jeanne Theobald, and member of the Fairmont High School class of 2007, Stephanie faces her new future with two children after her husband of eight years was killed during the construction of their home near Hewitt, Minnesota. The young couple were married in Fairmont at her parent’s home, and have two young children, Sylvie, 3, and Ladd, 1.

A GoFundMe page has been established for the family, with the specific goal in mind of allowing Stephanie to stay in their home as a testament to her children about their father. Stephanie shared her story, explaining what happened, how people are coming together to help her, and what the future looks like for her now.

“Aaron was working at a sign company for the past eight or nine years, and it was his dream to farm with his day who lives by that area in Hewitt,” she said. “So we found 77 acres of land there and he wanted to eventually build up the cattle heard.

“We had been planning our house for the last three years and finally this summer we were able to start building. He was doing everything himself along with his dad. Aaron and I were dedicated to becoming debt free, and we were saving for quite some time to build this house. Aaron was able to build the shell of this house, and he was working on the water lines when he fell in and it caved in on him.”

Stephanie also shared why it is so important to her to remain in the house.

“It was my husband’s dream to live there, and when we first bought the land I didn’t know anybody up there. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere and I didn’t really want to live there. I had that attitude for quite some time, but he also built a tiny house on the land and we were there every weekend and I kind of fell in love with the area.

“After the accident I was wondering how I could possibly want to stay at the place where my husband died. But then two days after he passed away I woke up at 2:30 a.m. and the Lord spoke to me and told me that was going to be my forever home. I decided I was going to commit this to God if it was going to happen, because we had been doing everything we could to keep things very cheap but safe. After I made that decision people kept coming up to me and they told me they were glad I made that choice because they knew Aaron wouldn’t want me to abandon it.

“I’ve had so many people telling me they are going to help build the house and give me their labor for free, people that don’t even know me and hear about this story. So my sister set up the fundraiser for me to help me pay for finishing the inside and getting the septic hooked up and finishing the landscaping. It’s just been kind of amazing with all of the support and all of the people that are coming to help me, because heaven knows I could never do this on my own.”

Stephanie also shared how her husband’s life has continued to impact her and those around her.

“Aaron had lots of people that loved him, and he had such great character,” she said. “He was a strong follower of Jesus and at his funeral over 100 people raised their hand and accepted Jesus. So it’s been miracle after miracle, even though this has been such a tragedy for me and I’m going to miss him so much.

“He was a true example of Christ and I believe that God is using this situation and He’s going to do great things. I was always very timid and shy about what people thought about me, and before this I relied on Aaron and put everything off on him, but I admired his boldness and I used to tell him that I wished I had that same boldness.

“Now I feel like a different person. I can feel the Lord’s anointing over me and I’m not afraid to talk about Jesus. It’s insane how much He’s changed me through this, and how much strength He’s given me to parent my kids and make the decisions that I’m making.

“I know that the Lord is with me and that we’re going to be okay.”

Those interested in the fundraiser can check out the Go Fund Me website at:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/family-of-aaron-broughton.