2018 FAMILIES
This year, the Chicago Polar Bear Club is honored to support two incredibly deserving families:
The Drew Family
Cynthia Drew, a resident of Evanston IL, has a lot of people depending on her. She is a loving matriarch, and is unshakably dedicated to her family. "Miss Cynthia", as she is known among friends, clearly has no limit on what she would do for her family.
Unfortunately, Miss Cynthia and her family are on the brink. She has been unable to work since 2015 due to a heart condition stemming from a heart attack. Despite this setback, she has continued to provide care for her large and loving family. This includes constant care for her niece, Tamika, who has been diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy and Scoliosis. Tamika, who is wheelchair bound, requires numerous visits to the doctors and specialists - a service Cynthia loving provides. Miss Cynthia's sister, Patti, her daughter Shannon, and her granddaughters, Alexis and Matayla, also currently live with Miss Cynthia. Additionally, Cynthia’s other daughter, Amber, depends on Cynthia to help with transportation and daycare for her four-year-old son, Legend.
On top of her many responsibilities caring for her immediate and extended family, Cynthia’s apartment for the past 15 years is now in foreclosure. As a result, she has been forced to relocate and by January 2018 she must find new housing for herself and all those that depend upon her. Unfortunately, this comes with increased housing costs, along with the additional security deposit, moving fees, etc.
All in all, we see Miss Cynthia working hard to care for her family and keep them together. With the help of your donations, our goal is to provide financial support to Miss Cynthia to help her provide a safe and loving home for her entire family.
The H Family
The H family has been through a lot over the past few years, and share a story of enduring love in the face of adversity.
Their son was born with Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome (FPIES), a rare food allergy. As a result, the parents need to be extremely cautious about the foods and other allergens that their son was exposed to. Now two and a half years old, the son’s diet is limited to only forty foods. In fact, until this month, he had never eaten in a restaurant. Because of his nutritional needs, he needs to nurse often, so as a result Alaina must limit her diet as well. When adding up the cost of his restricted diet along with the frequent visits to doctors and specialists for his care, and a number of other medical ailments that come along with FPIES, the expense for his care is incredibly high.
Further, in order to meet the needs of his care, his mother has been unable to work, leaving his father as the sole breadwinner. All of this results in a long list of expenses which the family has been challenged to cover on their own.
In addition to managing their son’s medical conditions, the father, a military veteran, has also had residual issues from his time in the service. As a result, the family works tirelessly, together, to understand and manage the emotional and financial complications that this has caused.
Though they are in a difficult position, the family is still optimistic. Their son’s diet is slowly expanding and their family was able to take a small vacation to see the childrens' grandparents. On the day that our team first met the family, their son even had his first ice cream (which he reacted well to)!
All in all, we see a family working hard, yet struggling to make ends meet. With the help of your donations, our goal is to provide financial support to this wonderful family to help them maintain their son’s strict diet, to help cover a portion of the numerous medical bills this family faces, and to show this family the support of their community while they manage the physical and emotional health of their family.