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Despite hard times, these parents are determined to prevail
It’s the stubborn determination of these parents, who are all refusing to allow life’s tough circumstances to dictate their future.
She’s the mother of an “adorable” 7-year-old daughter. (She sent a photo. It’s true.)
The girl has autism and is verbally delayed. She loves singing and adores “anything rainbow.” But the mother, who is currently jobless, is wrestling with a dilemma, as she explained in a letter to Globe Santa.
With past-due payments piling up, she said, “I’ve been trying to figure out a way for her to forget about Xmas gifts. Not being able to give your child a gift is like stomping on your heart.”
Such a heartbreaking image. But the mother’s woes are not the main takeaway from her letter. Rather, it’s her resourcefulness, and optimism — traits that emerge in many, many letters from parents and guardians going through unimaginably hard times.
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“I have hope. I have been working hard to get a job, and some places are interested in employing me,” the mother assured Globe Santa. “My goal is to get a job by the end of this month.”
Make no mistake: Raising a child when you have no steady income, or an inadequate one, can feel soul-crushing.
“I feel ashamed and guilty knowing that I can’t give them everything they want and need,” wrote another mother, with three children ages 5, 7, and 9. “Last year I couldn’t get them any presents for Christmas and it broke my heart.”
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But here are some of the many voices of parents working assiduously to surmount their challenges. They are turning to Globe Santa because they need a helping hand, especially at this time of year.
There’s the mother who lives in a homeless shelter with her 8-year-old son. She can’t work right now because she’s gone back to school “to improve our lives,” she wrote.” I’m learning to be a coder and after I graduate I will have a job being a medical coder.”
There’s the unemployed mother of a 4-year-old and two teenagers, who’s falling behind on her bills. She’s starting her own event-planning and baking business. “I want to be able to give back to the community and not always be the person looking for the community support.”
There’s the father in college who also has a job on campus “to make ends meet, [as] the cost of living in Boston is quite high.”
There’s the 22-year-old mother of a baby girl who is studying full time at Framingham State University, while working part time; she leaves her daughter in the care of her mother while she’s away. “I am determined to finish school,” she wrote, “to give us a better future.”
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There’s the mother who is a full-time graduate student, currently in two internships; she’s on track to graduate next spring with a master’s degree in mental health counseling.
If there is a theme in all these letters, it’s the stubborn determination of these parents, who are all refusing to allow life’s tough circumstances to dictate their future.
“My daughter gives me the strength to proceed and not give up,” a mother wrote. “I want to show her we can overcome challenges.”
For 68 years Globe Santa, a program of the Boston Globe Foundation, has provided gifts to children in need at holiday time. Please consider giving by phone, mail, or online at globesanta.org.
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