Help for the Hawkins

So, last year, many of you generously donated to a previous GoFundMe, spearheaded by Emma Eaton on behalf of Amanda & Chayne Hawkins and their beautiful family. Many of you are already aware of the struggles that this amazing family deals with on a daily basis since Chayne got sick and had to have massive surgery. He has been unable to return to work because of what seems like an endless stream of new diagnoses that keep appearing. Lyme and several other tick-borne diseases, degenerative disc disease, and more, which keep him from healing from the initial onslaught last year. Mandy has not returned to work due to the very real threat that the coronovirus presents to Chayne’s survival. The three younger children are distance learning and Reece (The oldest Hawkins Hero) is working hard to protect his family while working for a local electrician.

Mandy and Chayne haven’t seen a paycheck since the beginning of the year. They are receiving some cash assistance and food stamps, but nowhere near what it takes to survive. Mortgage, car payments, health insurance premiums, food for the 4-legged family members, even fuel to get back & forth to MD appointments. And feeding a family of 6? Well, no way can it be done with what the State is providing. 

Chayne’s disability carrier has denied all claims for long-term disability. And short-term ran out eons ago. Mandy has submitted a line-by-line summary of Chayne’s medical issues and thankfully, our wonderful Representative, Tim Ackert, is working with her to find relief. 

In the meantime, can we all pull through as a community again and help this amazing family through the fight of their lifetime? The Hawkins Family are a mainstay of the Town of Coventry. They are friends to all, and even with all they are sacrificing, still ask, “What can we do to help?” It would’ve been a wonderful thing if, after Chayne’s surgery last year, that everything went back to normal. We would have seen Chayne out front in the yard, training his amazing dogs, Mandy would be greeting all our kids at the preschool, loving on them as only Mandy can. Reece could concentrate on finishing up his electrician’s training. Reagan would be blowing up the stage at the Future Problem Solvers and showing off those goats with her 4-H club. Riley would be greeting his friends in the halls at Windham Tech and tearing up the field in Lacrosse. And Ryder would be splashing in puddles, climbing trees, and lovin’ life as only Ryder can. 

Please, if only a token, let’s help this family get back on their feet. Relief will be coming , in some sort of SSI or long-term disability, but right now is right now. The vegetable garden is dried up, the chickens are slowing down, but life goes on. And weall need to reach a hand down to pull this family out of the quicksand that wants to bury them.