Love in Action Stories

Our daughter was diagnosed with a brain tumor when she was 12, and life was forever changed. We had three Christmas’s together after she was diagnosed, before she passed on to her afterlife. We tried to keep it magical, but it wasn’t easy.

The second Christmas, since her diagnosis, she relapsed on Christmas Eve and the tumor caused her to be paralyzed from the waist down. We took turns at the hospital and tried to make the holiday feel ‘normal’ for her 2 siblings. Our 17-year-old son wrapped gifts with me until after midnight on Christmas Eve, so his youngest sister would wake up with gifts under the tree before we headed back to the hospital.

On our last Christmas with her Heartworks stepped in and helped us make it magical. They hung Christmas lights outside our house and a wreath on our front door. They asked for the children’s wish lists, shopped for the gifts, wrapped them all and delivered them (secretly) for us to put under the tree for Christmas morning. This was the most incredible gift to be home with our family on Christmas morning and have a tree filled with gifts. Our situation was far from normal, but what Heartworks gave us was invaluable. There were surprises, laughter and joy that we will never forget.

A local family lost their 33 yr old son, suddenly and unexpectedly. We reached out to them to offer Thanksgiving dinner for their first Thanksgiving after the death of their son.

His mother left us a voicemail explaining that they had just told all their family and friends that they would not be celebrating any holidays this year because it was just too hard. She then said ‘YES’ to our offer to deliver a ready to serve, catered Thanksgiving meal because this would allow them to recognize the holiday without having cook and prepare, which is something they did not have the strength to do this year.

The Advisory Council listened to the voicemail at our bi-monthly meeting and it moved us all to tears. This is another example of why we continue to offer this year after year….because it really does make things easier.

Heartworks came to my family’s rescue on so many different occasions. One of the greatest things they did for my family, while my husband had just gotten out of the hospital after a long stay was to make our Xmas morning so much easier for us by having a delicious breakfast delivered.

It gave our family time to just enjoy each other’s company and not have to worry about what was going to be made on that special morning. It seems silly to think what a huge difference it makes just knowing that we didn’t have to plan a menu and go to the grocery store to pick up items we would have needed to make breakfast. It truly meant so much and made our morning one to cherish without having to worry.

Thank you again to Heartworks and anyone who donated to make our morning special.

After experiencing our first Thanksgiving, only 2 months since my family lost my husband – and my children’s father – unexpectedly to suicide, we were dreading Christmas. And then a prayer wreath arrived from Heartworks, that I hung over the kitchen sink. It became my daily source of strength. The dishwasher in the temporary rental house didn’t work, and each time I faced a sink full of dishes, the task felt unbearably heavy—until the wreath arrived. I could feel the prayers of the women who had poured their love into it. It was as if they were there with me, carrying me through those weary moments and more.

Today, 7 years later, when we begin decorating for Christmas, the very first decoration I place on our mantel each year is our sacred Heartworks prayer wreath. It still has its beautiful bow and handwritten message—a tribute to the hope Heartworks gave us all those years ago.

It still sustains me. And it always will, just like Heartworks.

Heartworks helped rebuild the foundation of our healing, reminding us that we are not alone and that love can carry us forward. My family feels profoundly blessed to be living proof of the difference Heartworks can make, and we still carry that gift of healing and hope with us every single day.