LIMA — Sadie is not sure what she will be able to give her children Joshua, Wilson and Marie for Christmas this year.
The mother cares for all three children but has not been able to work steadily due to constraints caused by car problems and uncertainties with Wilson and Marie’s daycare services.
“I utilize everything I can in our community,” she said. “I go through Heartbeat (of Lima) for them. Right now, they’re at Early Headstart with WOCAP and that’s why I signed up for the Salvation Army’s Christmas program.”
The care that Wilson, 2, who was born with special needs, and Marie, 4, get from WOCAP, as valuable as it has been, is not dependable enough for childcare since a potential work schedule might not be able to cover for the classroom closing, Sadie said. And because Sadie’s vehicle, in need of a tune-up, an oil change, new tires and problems with the shocks, can only be used for essentials, it puts a further strain on her ability to find work as a delivery driver that she was previously doing.
“It drives, but I don’t drive it very far,” she said. “I take the kids to and from early headstart and I go to the grocery store. I take my oldest to work, but I don’t go anywhere because I’m worried that I might get stuck like when we got stuck at St. Rita’s for an hour when the car broke down.”
For Joshua, 16, going without has not been a foreign experience.
Sadie’s oldest child receives money and assistance from his father who lives in a different state, but even though he is a model student set to graduate early, he is working and helping out the household.
Sadie said that although he built a bed out of pallets, he now wants a real bedframe for his sleeping quarters and that if someone helped with that through the Salvation Army, it would mean a great deal.
“It’s becoming an issue for him so he was asking for it,” she said. “And he’s so hard to buy for since he is older, but he loves bodyspray and body wash.”
As much as Sadie and her family need help, she still finds time to spend giving back by donating old clothes and toys or volunteering to help at Early Headstart, as well as learning sign language to communicate with Wilson, who may be on the autism spectrum and does not speak at the appropriate level for his age.
Wilson, though, benefits from therapy and loves music. He also loves dinosaurs and other toys.
“He’s so funny,” Sadie said. “He really likes dinosaurs, trains and cars —most of the things that you would think a kid his age would like.”
Marie likes playing with dolls.
“She really likes crybaby dolls, which are very annoying,” Sadie said. “But she’s into that and she likes playing dress up. She’s only four, but she’s wearing seven- to eight-year-old clothes now.”
Sadie worked two jobs during the pandemic, but when she realized she needed help, it was an easy decision to turn to the Salvation Army.
But even beyond help for her family, she said that she just hopes more people help each other, especially during the holidays.
“It’s always nice to give to people and help, even if it’s just paying it forward in line at the drive-thru,” she said. “I hope that people consider helping because maybe they got help at one point when they needed it.”
ADOPT A STOCKING
The Adopt a Stocking Fund benefits families during the holiday season. Monetary donations can be given online at give.salvationarmy.org/stocking or via Adopt A Stocking; c/o The Salvation Army; P.O. Box 234, Lima, OH 45801. All material donations for a specific family should be dropped off at The Salvation Army, 614 E. Market St., Lima, and should include a copy of the article or the date the story appeared in The Lima News. See past stories at LimaOhio.com/tag/stocking.
Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.
