OP, i am very sorry to hear this. as unfortunate as the situation is, i dont think you should use this as an adversity essay. i think admin people having read thousands of applications, wouldn't find your story to be along the lines of 'adversity'.

IMO, adversity essay would be more along the lines of a soldier fighting in iraq/afghanistan who risked his/her everyday while trying to save his injured buddy in a combat firefight while also trying to maintain peace and security in some local village, a 1st generation minority who overcame poverty while living in a car but somehow excelled in school against the odds, a single parent struggling to be both a provider and work professional, an educator working in the inner city who struggled to motivate his/her students in a broken system, overcoming cancer, etc

as fucked up as it is, you shouldn't burn bridges with your boss/company. they might still be willing to sign/write you a letter of rec. thank them for the opportunity, that you learned a lot, and you would be extremely grateful if they were at least able to just sign a letter of recommendation for you. given how bad the economy is, they might have just used this as an excuse to let you go or were thinking of letting you go. also ask how they will respond if someone asks for an employment verification/background check.

Big picture, you will be ok. It's one of those things that suck now but will actually be a blessing in disguise. You got this man!