Saturday, July 21, 2012

Cindy's Boys

Three young men lost their mother suddenly a few months ago...at 51 she was being treated for pneumonia when a mass in her lung was spotted...before her first visit to an oncologist she passed away in her sleep sitting up in a chair...found by one of her teenage sons...


She was a widow living in the family home with her sons...they had moved in to care for her ailing mother (who has since passed)...her father and sister both died from cancer...


To make ends meet she and her boys collected and sold scrap metal, sold at flea markets...including many items they picked up by junking...one of the boys would take my parents trash/recycling to the curb and return the next day to bring the cans back in...Mom paid them a dollar each way...money the boys gave to their Mom...


My Mom would also call them to pick up my Dad when he fell...in the middle of the night, early in the morning...if they were home they would run right up and help...Mom paid them for this also and the money helped...the boys have since found jobs and purchased cell phones...Mom has their numbers in case she needs them...it is a real comfort to her knowing they are close by...


Recently Mom called the fire department to help Dad up and one of the boys came running up the street when he saw the vehicles on the road...his aunt lives down the street...this was before they gave Mom their cell numbers...a fine young man...he tells Dad he wants to be a Marine when he's out of high school...since Dad was a Marine it makes him proud...


I grew up with Cindy...she and her siblings weren't allowed to run around the neighborhood like the rest of us...if you wanted to play with them it had to be at their house...it didn't happen often since there were bikes to ride, woods to explore... her parents were hoarders...not so much in the house that I remember...but outside they kept building on to the garage and sheds to hold all the junk...


Since their Mother's passing the boys have been clearing out the house and garages...the oldest (20 yrs) moved back home to help, the younger two are still in high school...the youngest told my Mom that first thing they do is pay all the bills, then buy food...and put the rest of the money in the bank...what there is of it...


School will be starting soon and these young men aren't going to be able to work as much...I'd love to be able to purchase a Sam's Club membership for them and give them enough money to really fill up their pantry and freezers...haven't been in the house for years but I'll bet there are a few freezers!


There is much more to the story...please know that every penny raised through the Chip In will go to the boys to help them in any way possible...be it food, mortgage or car repair...they haven't had an easy life but were raised to be good young men...I know from the way they treat my parents that Cindy did a wonderful job with them...


If you can donate even a dollar it will help give them some breathing room...the Chip In box at the top right of my blog will be there for a month...if you can spread the would that will be most appreciated! I thought long and hard before asking this of my blogging friends...these boys need some good news...


Thanks in advance for your help...





7 comments:

wendyytb said...

I can't see the "chip in button?

ihook2 said...

Oh Kelley, these boys seem to be such wonderful young people. Glad to hear they are near your parents to help out. Hope friends can find a few dollars to help these boys out.
Pam

Cathy G. said...

Kelley,
What an awesome sweet thing for you to do! It has to be darn hard for young kids to make it on their own these days with prices for everything going sky high.... and these boys sound like they will appreciate it too.... You have my $ for sure!
Bless your heart for stepping forward!!
Cathy G

HomeSpunPrims said...

Kelley,
I'm so glad you did decide to share the story of this family with us. I would be happy to help out these fine young men. Cindy did indeed do a fine job raising her boys being they are considerate of the elderly and helping their neighbors.
Hugs, Lori

Primitives By The Light of The Moon said...

Sounds like wonderful young men! I believe their mom did a wonderful job raising them and bet she would be very proud :)

Alice ~ Folk Art Primitives said...

Bless you for extending a hand up to these boys ~ keep us posted on how they're doing! I'd love to keep track of them!

TheCrankyCrow said...

What a wonderful gesture, Kelley! I'm a little behind here on my blog reading, but glad to see I haven't missed out.... ;o) Thanks for doing this....Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin