April 13, 1986, Alan and Debby Tallman, along with their three children, moved into their dream house in Horicon, Wisconsin. Horicon is a small farming town, and as of the 2010 census, had a population of only 3,665. Alan was a shift supervisor at a manufacturing plan, and Debby was a stay-at-home mom. They were a churchgoing family, and were enjoying life. 

In early February 1987, they purchased a bunk bed at a second-hand shop. They assembled it and stored it in their basement. Within weeks, their children, who had rarely been sick, suddenly were sick all the time. They were in the doctor’s office regularly, sometimes even all three at the same time. That May, they decided to move the bed upstairs, a decision they would later come to regret.