Donate to Help Melodie and Peter Hughes

This is a love story. As with so many love stories, it has its ups, downs, feasts, famines, love, hurt, joy, worry, forgiveness, helpfulness, necessity, charity, family, and community.

It started more than 35 years ago. They were young-he 19 and she a mere 17 years old, and they were in love. It was obvious to all that knew them, they shared promises to each other, with each other, to hold and protect one another long before they spoke their vows officially. Once said, they were formally introduced as Melodie and Peter Hughes.

In short order, the two became three and they couldn’t have been happier as they, so young themselves, welcomed their first-born child. They showed their young daughter through words and actions, that she was loved, wanted, cherished, and protected. Working as much as they could and cutting out all extravagances to make ends meet, their financial challenges never overshadowed their love for their family. As they adapted their lives with a newborn babe, they made the decision to move to New Market in search of better employment opportunities. There, they were close to Peter’s mom and employment was better. Before long, their little girl became a big sister as they welcomed their son into this world. Happiness abounds, they had the million-dollar family…. just not the million dollars to go with it.

As busy as life was, they never forgot about community. They participated in fun things, in important things and before they knew it, it had been 21 years of this volunteerism. They were in love, uplifted, hopeful, joyous and unstoppable.

Years passed, they were steady, and the kids were growing up into wonderful young adults. Then their son was diagnosed with an autoimmune and inflammatory disease in which his immune system attacks his healthy cells. This 16-year-old boy was in excruciating pain, and for 2 years, he required a feeding tube 12 hours a day to give his body the nutrients it needed. He was palliative. Although he will always suffer with his diagnosis, after 4 years of pain and suffering, he was finally able to get the surgeries he so desperately needed. He was able to get these surgeries because Melodie fought for healthcare budget reform. This fight has resulted in 3 dozen other lives being saved.

Never faltering, Pete continued to work as much as he could while Melodie became her son’s lifeline. They cared for him with the love, tenderness, and devotion only parents can give. The stressors and worries were ever present, yet Mel and Pete shouldered these challenges, always putting their best foot forward and putting their children above all else, above all others.

Over these years, Mel and Pete opened their home to troubled teens, feeding them, supporting them and most importantly, giving them a safe place to lay their heads. When they weren’t helping teens, they were fostering children. 5 young children, in all, that needed love, tenderness, routine, encouragement, hugs, laughter, safety and security.

When Peter’s mom’s heath started to betray her, she needed care and assistance. Mel and Pete stepped up to the plate, caring for her, creating memories, loving, living, and supporting her, in her home, with her dignity and as much independence as was safe. As the years passed, the care she required increased to total dependence and they knew she required more care than they could now give. With broken hearts, she was placed in a long-term care facility. They were there every day, tending to her needs from hygiene to nourishment. One morning, Melodie went in to clean and dress Nanna. This time however, Mel found that Nanna was already dressed. This was curious so Mel asked staff why this morning the routine was different. After different stories, her gut told her something was wrong. She examined Nanna, she found that she had was covered in deep tissue bruises and abrasions. Unable to communicate or defend herself, Nanna had been assaulted. With the inquiry into this horrendous assault and the vague explanations of how Nanna’s was so badly injured, Mel and Pete knew they weren’t being told the truth. With their demands of answers, policy and procedure changes being ignored, Mel took this horrific, appalling and more common-than-we-want-to-believe issue to Queen’s Park. Her meetings, fighting and advocating resulted in changed laws pertaining to abuses suffered in Long Term Care facilities.

After the family said goodbye to their Matriarch, the Hughes family moved back to Sudbury where Pete resumed his hard-working ways to be the provider for the family. Melodie picked up with helping and caring for little children. Together building the newest chapter in their lives, surrounding people with love, engaging lost ones, and being contributing members to this community.

On January 13 of this year, Melodie headed into the kitchen to find Peter’s lifeless body on the floor. His heartrate had been too high. This caused his heart to expand and then stop. He wasn’t breathing, he didn’t have a heartbeat and he was already changing colours. Dropping to her knees, she cradled her husband’s head and hollered for help. Their children came running, one calling 911 and the other performing lifesaving measures on his beloved father. When their son was tired, their daughter took over. Together, they did chest compressions for 8 minutes. When paramedics arrived, Pete’s vital signs were absent. Thanks to the kids’ courage and determination, they made sure to keep Peter’s blood moving until the paramedics could resuscitate. During his lengthy stay in the hospital, with his loving, devoted family by his side, Peter had a pacemaker and defibrillator implanted. Peter has been diagnosed with a genetic heart disease and, while he’s regained enough strength to return to the comforts of home, his heart is only operating at 12%.

They all feel so very blessed, and they express their gratitude every day. Things are tough though. With Peter being the provider, he has not received any income at all since this happened. He will be unable to work for some time. Although they would never ask for help, they are feeling the financial stress and worry.

Peter and Melodie have always lived by example. Offering love, support, shelter to others. They have both worked so hard and for so many years for the underprivileged, the sick, the vulnerable and their community at large.

This Go Fund Me page was created to give them a hand through these very emotional, physical, and financially stressful times. An opportunity for others to help those that helped so many. A time for our community to come together to support them. It starts small. A simple act of kindness, but it can ripple out and create a sea of kindness they so well deserve.