A fire on June 22 heavily damaged Sofia Loren Salon in Boca Raton, Florida, gutting a business that owner Sofia Cardeña says she built over more than two decades of reinvestment — and the city confirms it offers no direct aid for businesses in her situation.

Boca Raton Fire Rescue is still investigating the cause of the blaze, which broke out three weeks before Cardeña spoke with WFLX reporter Victor Jorges. Security video captured the flames. Cardeña learned of the fire not from an alarm or a call from authorities, but from a flood of client texts.

"I was getting texts… are you OK? Are you OK? I was not understanding," Cardeña said.

When she arrived at the salon, police and firefighters blocked entry. "Everything was burned, everything was destroyed," she said.

Cardeña described the operating philosophy she carried through more than twenty years in business: a boutique salon experience built on constant reinvestment in skills and service. "How do we change this? What are we adding? What are we investing in? What classes are we taking? How do we make the client feel better?" she said those questions were always on her mind.

The rebuild now runs through a patchwork of private and public channels. WFLX contacted the City of Boca Raton about assistance available to Cardeña. The city said it does not offer aid for situations like this, but its economic development manager identified insurance proceeds, Small Business Administration loans and fundraising as the practical routes through a rebuild.

The city also pointed to the Small Business Development Center at Florida Atlantic University. The SBDC provides free consulting and can help a business identify private grants as they become available, prepare loan applications, negotiate with lenders, and build cash flow and recovery plans — a sequence that frames the likely order of operations for the salon's comeback.

Cardeña's family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to fund the reconstruction. The crowdfunding route sits alongside insurance and potential SBA financing as the salon's third funding track.

Cardeña herself kept the stakes in perspective. "More grateful to God that I am alive. But I know the process is a long, long process," she said.

With the fire investigation still open at Boca Raton Fire Rescue, the path back for Sofia Loren Salon depends on how quickly insurance proceeds, SBA lending and donations come together — and Cardeña has signaled she intends to rebuild.