Please help Cyndy and Bill: Heroes in Need

“Clothes and fabric will wash. Wooden furniture will dry out. We survived a fire in Berlin, an earthquake on Okinawa, and now this.”

Our sister Cyndy sent this text to our family group chat on the evening of Thursday, September 26, 2024, just hours before Hurricane Helene struck the community of New Port Richey, Florida, where she and Bill, her husband of 51 years, had retired. It’s true that they had survived natural disasters while proudly serving in the US Army in careers that took them around the world, but this disaster has proven to be devastating beyond measure.

After Cyndy left the Army’s Intelligence Corps to raise their three children, Julie, Billy, and Kelly, Bill continued to serve another twelve years, retiring as a twenty-year veteran in 1993. During those twelve years, Bill was sent alone to Korea twice, and Cyndy stayed stateside to take care of the kids and their home while working full-time. Their dedication and love for our country, and the sacrifices they made, fill us with pride.

Cyndy and Bill are loving grandparents to Harmony, Dylan, Chloe, Makayla, Leah, Brianna, and Abigail. They’ve devoted their lives to family, friends, and country without fail.

Cyndy is a cancer survivor whose bright spirit and constant positivity throughout treatment were a true inspiration to other survivors, and everyone whose life she has touched would agree that she is an angel. She loves quilting, and she looks forward to coming back to Illinois to meet with her quilting bee friends, whom she has known for over two decades. Every Christmas, one of her favorite traditions is having her grandkids over to bake cookies and decorate their beautiful Christmas tree with decorations that she’s collected from places all over the world.

Bill is the dad and friend everybody wishes they had. He gives the best hugs and will drop everything for anyone in need—for him, a stranger is just someone who’s not your friend yet. His sense of humor and grill skills are legendary, and we affectionately refer to Bill as “Billicorn” because he is a unicorn in human form. His family means everything to him, and he’s a hero to us, the lucky ones who can say that we’re his people.

When the evacuation orders came before the hurricane, Bill wanted to stay behind to make sure their property and neighbors were okay. Unfortunately, he had to be rescued by the National Guard when water leaked into their van and was chest-high when he was finally picked up with their beloved Dachshund, Cinnamon. Their minivan had just had the transmission replaced at a cost of $7500 and is now destroyed. Cyndy had gone to our aunt’s home inland before the evacuation order. They are, thankfully, all safe now.

Now, in the aftermath of Helene, Bill and Cyndy have lost almost everything—antique furniture, electronics, family heirlooms. Some things can’t be replaced, but with their home uninhabitable, they are now faced with the huge task of finding housing, buying furniture (all they’re left with is a card table and a mattress), and moving forward is going to be an expensive mission. Emergency disaster funds will be limited, and they are experiencing a true disaster. Please help us in helping these American heroes by giving your support; no amount is too small.

Love,

Jake and Kimberly