Mom seeks help for family after dad disabled in car crash

Keith Lockhart, conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, greets Globe Santa in front of Boston Symphony Hall Saturday. (Globe photo by Taslim Sidi)

While the mother of two young children and her husband are grateful they survived, their lives were tragically altered in a head-on auto collision three years ago.

In a letter to Globe Santa written just before Thanksgiving, she recounted their blessings while simultaneously describing the horrific crash that left the children's father with a broken back - unable to work since that fateful night.

"Thank you for taking the time to consider our family for help this season," she wrote. "I know there are people worse off than we are, but things have been very hard the last few years."

They live on the North Shore and were thrilled to buy their first home in late 2002, long before the economic downturn that has threatened to uproot so many homeowners. Now they too are facing foreclosure.

Since the accident, the family of four has struggled to survive on a single income and a modest insurance settlement.

"I have worked as a waitress, and we had to refinance our house four times in two years to keep a roof over heads and our bills paid," she wrote. "This year, our bills are now so high that all of the money is gone, and I do not know what to do."

Like many parents, their primary concern beyond meeting the monthly expenses is how to shelter their children from the stress of financial hardship.

The couple has been blessed with two healthy girls, now 6 and 9, who despite the tough times have continued to do well in school and maintain their enthusiasm for extracurricular activities, such as scouts and youth sports.

The girls have been forced to do more around the house because their father has chronic and debilitating back pain, and their mother often works late into the night, but they rarely complain.

Their mother wrote to Globe Santa because she said they "deserve more than we can give."

"The best Christmas gift this year would be to see the smiles on their faces when they open their presents," she wrote. "If you could please find it in your heart to help my family this holiday season it would be greatly appreciated."

This family will be among some 30,000 receiving gifts from Globe Santa this Christmas. For more than half a century, Globe Santa has been helping families who celebrate Christmas in the Santa Claus tradition but cannot afford presents for their children.

Last year, $1.1 million was raised and toys were delivered to 57,079 children in 29,379 households.

Globe Santa's mail bin this season is already bursting with about 30,000 requests for assistance in what is shaping up to be a record campaign in terms of the number of families in need.

Donations from individuals and groups who like knowing they helped make a child happy at Christmas are what ensures that every qualified Eastern Massachusetts family asking for a visit from Globe Santa is included on his list.

The Boston Globe pays all of the administrative costs associated with the campaign, so every dollar donated is used to buy Christmas gifts for children.