Teri Roundtree- Wolfe City, TX

It is hard to pick one child, parent, family that most stood out in our first year.  There were so many.  

One of the situations that was most impactful had to do with a young lady from Commerce.  I called to let her know that her toys were ready to be picked up, but she had no idea what I was talking about.  It took me a moment to realize that she had not applied for herself, it was one of her teachers that applied for her.  Once we figured this out, she was quick to come to the warehouse and pick up the toys.  When she came to the warehouse, she, and her boyfriend, both seemed to be a little taken back.  Matt said to her ‘she looked like she needed a hug.’  That is when she absolutely broke down, she literally hit the floor crying tears of joy.  She told us about having nothing for Christmas, no tree, no lights, no toys for her children.  She said over and over again, “You don’t understand, I had nothing for my kids.”  She ended the conversation that night by asking our team to take a picture with her.  She said she was going to make us famous. 

A month or so later, the local VFW asked if we could help them find families that needed coats.  Our girl from Commerce came to mind immediately.  I reached out to see if she needed coats for her kids, she did.  Once again, she and her boyfriend came to our warehouse.  She told us that the day she received my phone call for the toys, her life changed.  Since that time, she found a broken artificial tree, and she brought it home.  Her boyfriend scrounged for screws and brackets and anything he could find to make the tree stand. He screamed at her once it was standing “Look baby, look!!!!  It’s standing!!!”  He was so proud that he was able to fix it. Then someone gave them some light and ornaments.  Then she got a job, and she got approved for a house through a low-income assistance program.  Her life had truly started down a better path.