Their 401k only evaporated if they locked in the losses and sold their stocks while it was low. If they wisely invested them into a diversity of solid funds and stocks, then they should be higher now than before the stock market dip. The DOW is over 15.5 today, which is well above what it was at before the dip.
Ideally, what you should do (and what I did), is ramp up your stock purchasing when the market is low. I personally used the dip to increase my buying power, and purchased as much as I could during the dip. I made a decent amount off the dip, and it helped me get into my current home.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
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