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7 selections of fresh vegetables
6 selections of
fresh fruits
7 varieties of
frozen meats
5 bags of
non-perishables
1 bag of paper
products and personal care items
Gifts from a Secret Pal
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A lot can happen to a single person in the span of a lifetime. Many can look
fondly back on their lives, having reached old age, and reflect upon all
their accomplishments and achievements. They can remember all the time spent
with their loved ones and the work they put into preparing for their
retirement. Others, however, have suffered great tragedies in their lives
which no one should have to endure. For many in our Senior Citizen Project,
life has been filled with these tragedies, and the aftershocks are still
affecting them to this day. Your sponsored senior, 65 year old Stella, has
been through a great deal in her life. She has suffered in poverty for as
long as she has lived. For this reason we are thankful to you, Schumacher
Family, for empowering us to bring some needed comfort into her life. We
would like to take this opportunity to share some of this woman’s stories
with you so that you may get to know her better.
Stella grew up in Poland,
but her childhood was not a happy one. She lost both of her parents to the
horrors of World War II before she was even three years old. Her grandmother
took in young Stella, letting her live on her farm. Stella still remembers
walking to school barefoot as a child because her family could not afford to
buy her shoes.
By the time she moved to
the U.S. at age 25 she was already married and had a child. She was hoping
that her life would begin to look up, but before too long she found herself
divorced and broke, having to raise her two children on her own. Now, years
later, her situation has improved very little. She rarely sees her children
and must live life with the many burdens of old age and poverty.
Suffering from
fibromyalgia, high blood pressure, psoriasis, eczema and thyroid problems
have taken their toll on Stella. She says that she is in constant pain and
that she doesn’t know how she will feel from day to day. She becomes tired
easily which means that she is often confined to her small apartment for
long periods of time. She says that she would enjoy being able to go out and
maybe join a club or take a class but her illnesses along with her lack of
transportation keep her home all day. Her meager income of $565 a month is
hardly any help as $128 goes to rent and another $75 goes to medical and
utility bills, leaving her with little left over to pay for the basic
necessities of life.
Fortunately, Stella will
never have to worry about where her next meal will come from. She says that
she loves receiving all the fresh fruits and vegetables along with the
non-perishables and personal care products each month. Her inability to
travel very far means that groceries delivered right to her door are a real
blessing for her. The service that we have come together to provide for
Stella has given her a reason to look on the bright side of things lately.
We are confident that with your help we can continue to give her reasons to
finally begin to count her blessings!
Things to Remember about Stella:
• Stella’s birthday is July 11, 1938.
• Her monthly income is $565.
• She has a dog named Kasia.
• She has a cockatoo which she says whistles all day.
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