Nadine's Family
July 13, 2005
Dear People of Open Heart Kitchen
I wanted to write to thank you for what your meal services have done for my family. In November of last year, my husband was driving home from a business trip in Vallejo and was killed by a drunk driver who was swerving across the road. I had always been a stay-home mom, and when he died we had three kids ages 6, 9 and 11. As if our grief wasn’t shattering enough, his company’s insurance and our separate life insurance were fighting over if we’d get any money, and the drunk driver got a very high profile lawyer who was contesting everything. It was a legal mess that slowly ate away our savings. Before my husband died, I remember feeling so secure, that we had insurance coverage and some money put away. What a joke that was. Anyways, before too long, creditors were calling and every spare penny was disappearing quickly. We came to your meal service at Asbury several times, and everyone was so nice. We took home the bread that was offered too. I don’t know what we would have done if Open Heart Kitchen wasn’t there to get us through tough times.
Now, eight months later, the legal knot is untangling. The house is on the market, and we have an offer that I think we’ll take. We’re moving to Georgia to live near some family where our dollar can stretch better. We’ll be okay.
We met some other families who were getting meals at Open Heart Kitchen too. Although our stories were different, they were the same in some ways. We were stuck in a terrible situation, but caring people like you were there to make it manageable.
May God bless all of you.
Nadine and family
Dan Gets on His Feet Again
Dan was in a tragic car accident that left his leg crushed, requiring multiple surgeries. Without medical insurance, Dan’s doctor bills piled up and piled up until he lost his home. In a full leg cast, Dan lived in his car in Livermore. Just to survive, he frequented Open Heart Kitchen’s hot meal programs while he was recovering. Today, his leg is healed, and Dan is quite literally back on his feet. He has started up an advertising sign business, has a place to live, and is working to pay off his medical bills.
Hope for the Herndandez's
The “Hernandez’s,” a family of nine comprised of two parents, four school-aged children, two grandparents and a great-uncle. The head of the household washes cars, helps with a landscaping service, and does janitorial work when it’s available. One child is disabled. The great-uncle has cancer and is diabetic; the grandmother suffers from dementia. His wife cleans houses when the children are at school, if she can find someone to look after their senior family members while she’s away. Their combined annual income is less than $20,000. They cannot survive without Open Heart Kitchen’s hot meal program.
A Constant for "Mr. A"
Mr. “A” eats dinner at Ridge View Commons Senior Meal Program. His wife is in a care facility 30 miles away, and the cost of gas visiting her every day is disintegrating his already extremely fixed income. He has recently been diagnosed with a serious medical condition himself, making his future uncertain. For now, the only constant is the dinner he receives from Open Heart Kitchen.
Twin Grins
“Dan and Eric” are twin 1st graders at Marylin Avenue School. Their father died last year, and their mother is working two jobs to barely make ends meet. Even so, the boys are still thriving. Dan is a brilliant artist, and loves sketching buildings in great detail. His brother Eric has a phenomenal head for numbers and will be entering an accelerated math program. Through their family hardship, they are still joyful little boys, and the volunteers who distribute the lunches are rewarded with ear-to-ear grins when they accept their donated lunches every Friday.
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