Help the Sherrard Family Find a Home
Donation protected
The Sherrards (husband, wife, and four children ages 13 to 19) have been through a lot, more than any family should have to go through, and it is now that they need your help. They need a home, and while they have enough money to pay rent, they don’t have enough savings to pay the three-months rent and moving expenses required to start anew. And not only that, the sole family car has broken down and is unfixable. The car that Patrick and Lala use to get to the 6 jobs they work between the two of them and shuttle the children to school, work, and activities unexpectedly started stalling at red lights and then died, leaving them without a vehicle. It’s more than they can figure out. They recently found out their landlord is selling their home, and they have 6 weeks to find another place to live.
For some, this might just be a rough stretch, but for the Sherrards, it feels more like a last straw. After having their lease unexpectedly terminated, at no fault of their own, in the winter of 2019, the family of six found themselves displaced. Patrick Sherrard remembers sitting in the school counselor’s office, there to discuss bussing for the children, and having a hard time processing while hearing the word “homeless” over and over again from the counselor’s lips. Eventually, with family, friends, and near strangers scraping together what they could to help out, and Patrick and Lala pinching their last pennies, they were lucky to find a new home that they loved. While they were relieved to find a home, going through the experience of losing their home so suddenly was traumatic for all of them. Their second child lives with Asperger’s, making a change in routine particularly stressful. The oldest daughter had to leave her family in distress for her second year of college before they had found a permanent home, miles away from her family. And the two other girls had to start at a new school, establish a new identity when adolescence itself is enough for most without additional tumult.
The family moved into their new home in the nick of time in the beginning of 2020, just before COVID-19 struck and locked everyone indoors. The family couldn’t have been more grateful to have a roof over their heads. They started to feel at home and settled.
At the start of 2021, the entire family was struck with the deadly virus. Luckily the family suffered mild symptoms except for Patrick who became desperately ill, with residual symptoms lingering for weeks beyond his initial recovery. While his wife’s symptoms were not as severe, her job had a policy that made it extremely difficult for her to return to work, missing weeks of pay.
Patrick has spent his entire career working with adults whose abilities and challenges make it difficult to live independently and take care of themselves. It is the kind of work you do because it is your calling, not because it will pay you abundantly.
If you are seeing this, you may have already met Patrick Sherrard, in which case you likely also know that he is a very special person. Patrick’s late mother, Evelyn, would say to him, “The bigger the heart, the bigger the hurt. Boy, you are in for a lot of hurt.” Whether the black sheep of the family or the outcast in the high school cafeteria, the expression, “he’d give you the shirt off his back” doesn’t do Patrick’s generosity justice. His wife, Lala, is a deeply good woman who lectors at church and has made caring for her four children her top priority, putting them before herself. And the kids are the best there are. They are kind, loving, and unlike so many of their generation, they know how to be present with family, put down their phones, and enjoy each other’s company, playing games or laughing around the dinner table.
Sometimes bad things happen to good people. And with a few turns of fate, anyone could be down on their luck, finding themselves unfathomably without a home, struggling to find a way out of a situation that seems to only become more desperate with each turn. Reaching the goal of this campaign could help the Sherrard family to purchase a car to prevent the downward spiral that would be inevitable if they were unable to get to work because of a lack of transportation. The family could use this gift toward a security deposit for a new rental.
A gift of any size could make a difference. Through the kindness of family, friends, and strangers, we know the Sherrards will make a new home and get on the path to healing that they so greatly deserve.
For some, this might just be a rough stretch, but for the Sherrards, it feels more like a last straw. After having their lease unexpectedly terminated, at no fault of their own, in the winter of 2019, the family of six found themselves displaced. Patrick Sherrard remembers sitting in the school counselor’s office, there to discuss bussing for the children, and having a hard time processing while hearing the word “homeless” over and over again from the counselor’s lips. Eventually, with family, friends, and near strangers scraping together what they could to help out, and Patrick and Lala pinching their last pennies, they were lucky to find a new home that they loved. While they were relieved to find a home, going through the experience of losing their home so suddenly was traumatic for all of them. Their second child lives with Asperger’s, making a change in routine particularly stressful. The oldest daughter had to leave her family in distress for her second year of college before they had found a permanent home, miles away from her family. And the two other girls had to start at a new school, establish a new identity when adolescence itself is enough for most without additional tumult.
The family moved into their new home in the nick of time in the beginning of 2020, just before COVID-19 struck and locked everyone indoors. The family couldn’t have been more grateful to have a roof over their heads. They started to feel at home and settled.
At the start of 2021, the entire family was struck with the deadly virus. Luckily the family suffered mild symptoms except for Patrick who became desperately ill, with residual symptoms lingering for weeks beyond his initial recovery. While his wife’s symptoms were not as severe, her job had a policy that made it extremely difficult for her to return to work, missing weeks of pay.
Patrick has spent his entire career working with adults whose abilities and challenges make it difficult to live independently and take care of themselves. It is the kind of work you do because it is your calling, not because it will pay you abundantly.
If you are seeing this, you may have already met Patrick Sherrard, in which case you likely also know that he is a very special person. Patrick’s late mother, Evelyn, would say to him, “The bigger the heart, the bigger the hurt. Boy, you are in for a lot of hurt.” Whether the black sheep of the family or the outcast in the high school cafeteria, the expression, “he’d give you the shirt off his back” doesn’t do Patrick’s generosity justice. His wife, Lala, is a deeply good woman who lectors at church and has made caring for her four children her top priority, putting them before herself. And the kids are the best there are. They are kind, loving, and unlike so many of their generation, they know how to be present with family, put down their phones, and enjoy each other’s company, playing games or laughing around the dinner table.
Sometimes bad things happen to good people. And with a few turns of fate, anyone could be down on their luck, finding themselves unfathomably without a home, struggling to find a way out of a situation that seems to only become more desperate with each turn. Reaching the goal of this campaign could help the Sherrard family to purchase a car to prevent the downward spiral that would be inevitable if they were unable to get to work because of a lack of transportation. The family could use this gift toward a security deposit for a new rental.
A gift of any size could make a difference. Through the kindness of family, friends, and strangers, we know the Sherrards will make a new home and get on the path to healing that they so greatly deserve.
Organizer and beneficiary
Sarah Franzen
Organizer
Commack, NY
Patrick Sherrard
Beneficiary