Ashley has two children, and she has cancer.
Chemotherapy makes it challenging for her to care for them. Ashley doesn’t complain.
However, on days when Ashley’s body betrays her, she leans on Nehemiah and Katelyn, a Better Together host family in St. Petersburg.
They go to Ashley, comfort her, and pick up Jaylen, 11, and Aaliyah, 9, who stay with them until Ashley regains her strength.
Nehemiah’s mother, who beat Stage 3 breast cancer, inspires the husband and wife, both 26 years old, to help. “I got to see the good, bad, ugly, and then some when my mom had cancer,” said Nehemiah.
While she was undergoing chemotherapy, Nehemiah’s mother fed homeless veterans on Highway 192 in Davenport. She once took in children whose parents had abandoned them at a gas station. She was a community activist. “My mother taught me that if there was somebody in need, do whatever you can,” said Nehemiah.
Caring for Jaylen and Aaliyah isn’t the first time the couple has hosted. In June, they took care of another brother and sister. “That was a big turning point for us. It gave us an understanding of what Better Together is doing. It was one of the best things we ever did,” said Katelyn.
Nehemiah and Katelyn, with support from Better Together staff, Northwest Church of Christ, and their employer, Crown Automotive Group, say they will help care for Jaylen and Aaliyah until Ashley beats cancer.
“She’s so strong,” Katelyn said of Ashley.
“She’s a hardworking, driven young lady who is focused on taking care of her kids,” said Nehemiah. “She reminds me of my mother.”
Story by Kinfay / Better Together
