EMPTY STOCKING: This family can't go home for the holidays
Eugene and Laura try to teach their adopted children that home is where you live.
The lesson has been a little harder this year after a fire badly damaged the family’s home in September, sending them to a hotel for months.
“No one was hurt and that’s a blessing,” Laura said.
The family, whose first names are being used to protect their privacy, has five adopted children, ages 7 to 13 years old. They also care for a 33-year-old daughter with special needs.
So being forced from home as the holidays approach has been stressful.
“Devastation and stress — that’s what was going through our minds,” Eugene said of the fire.
The couple said the American Red Cross showed up “like angels” after the fire, with stuffed animals for the kids, necessities and hotel vouchers. Laura and Eugene hadn’t even called.
“It’s nice to have someone help us in our time of need,” Laura said. “Here I am about ready to fall apart and they’re saying ‘it will be all right. Yes it’s going to be OK.’ ”
The Pikes Peak Chapter of the American Red Cross is one of 14 area charities receiving grants from The Gazette-El Pomar Foundation Empty Stocking Fund. The agency’s services include providing relief to victims of disasters.
Eugene and Laura are hoping to get back into their house by Christmas — but things don’t look good.
“The number one thing we’ve been relying on is God,” Laura said. “We’ve been through a lot in our lives, but we lean on each other and our family and friends.”
TO DONATE
Make a secure donation at www.fillanemptystocking.org. Call 476-1673 to make a credit card or stock donation over the phone. Checks can be made payable to the Empty Stocking Fund and mailed to P.O. Box 400, Colorado Springs, CO 80901.
