Sarah Starts Again
Donation protected
Meet my amazing friend Sarah, whom I've known since we were ten years old (over 50+ years!) ... she needs our help today more than ever, so I'm asking for her. Last week this amazing woman who has endured so much but given so much more to others, lost everything she owns -- everything that is dear to her -- in a horrific fire, set by an unstable neighbor, escaping only with her life thanks to courageous firefighters and neighbors who dragged her out of her burning little home. She has nothing but the clothes on her back and her precious dog Lola. She is staying with family and still basically in shock. I cannot even imagine starting over at 65, but this is what she is facing. Along with a few other friends, we are hoping to raise enough for Sarah's Fund to Start Over to help buy the basic necessities, get her life in order, find a new apartment and basically get her life together again. I hope you'll take a minute to get to know her, and if you can donate $10, $25 or more to help Sarah Start Over, I would be -- and I know Sarah will be -- ever so grateful.
Born and raised in Brookline MA, Sarah Parsons was never wealthy in money but very rich in friends and family - like her mom, she worked her tail off her whole life -- to do for others, from her family to her friends to whomever needed it. She lived in Brookline Village growing up and later spent time in Queechee VT. She's had her share of troubles, all of which she faced with amazing strength. Some years ago, after losing her beloved husband, she moved to New Jersey to be with her brother, Bobby Parsons, and her precious nephew Stephen (who is like a son to her) and his family. It wasn't an easy transition, for many reasons, mostly failing health. But last year, with Stephen and Bobby's help, Sarah's life was finally on an even keel -- in a beautiful little apartment of her own with her best friend, her Yorkie Lola ;-). With hard work and physical therapy she was independent, getting around with a walker and wheelchair, visiting friends and getting out in her back yard. Mostly, she had made her apartment her "home" -- Sarah treasured everything she could carry with her that she or her mother or grandmother had collected -- over a lifetime she surrounded herself with endless photo albums, family china, knicknacks, linens, artwork and furniture pieces from here and there that she put together beautifully. No matter how small her "living space," her special belongings were always lovingly placed and displayed. It brought her enormous comfort. Then the unthinkable: her little home burned to the ground in a fiery nightmare that she barely escaped. Now she has lost it all. The items are irreplaceable, but she can hold onto the memories if we help her rebuild her life, piece by piece.
Some of you might recognize Sarah as the bubbly field hockey player at Brookline High School, Class of '67 (her profile picture), ALWAYS laughing or making you laugh. Some may remember her as one of the "Three Musketeers": Sarah, me and Cathy Fielding....we were (and still ARE in our hearts) inseparable. We couldn't find many pics of Sarah, but one is when she was one of my bridesmaids ;-) and a couple from the Brookline High Murivian Class of '67 photos. Some may remember Sarah as "Sadie", the flower child, the baker, the dancer who moved to Colorado because "it called her", the chef who could whip up a gourmet dinner from whatever she could find in the fridge....she was, and is, all these things, but right now? she is down for the count....her bubbly spirit is so heavy from this past week, we are in a rush to help.
Of course we are all doing everything we can, but we need a bigger "village" so I'm hoping you'll donate to help do the immediate "stuff": buy some basic clothing, get her back onto her medications (she has survived many health challenges, many operations on her knees and feet) that she needs, and to start rebuilding a safe and enveloping home. Simple things: money for groceries - money for a fridge to keep them in -- it's hard to even imagine where to begin.
Cathy Fielding - the other "amigo" - is my partner in crime here and with her hubby and best friend, John Labadini, is helping put this all together -- my profile pic is with my partner and love of my life, Chris Spinazzola, who rounds out our small posse - we didn't know what else to do, except that we just know we have to do something for Sarah and believe you will all help us reach out, spread the word to friends and family, and together, help us help Sarah rebuild her life.
Thanks SO much for whatever you can do. Huge love & kisses to you all! xoxoxoxo
Born and raised in Brookline MA, Sarah Parsons was never wealthy in money but very rich in friends and family - like her mom, she worked her tail off her whole life -- to do for others, from her family to her friends to whomever needed it. She lived in Brookline Village growing up and later spent time in Queechee VT. She's had her share of troubles, all of which she faced with amazing strength. Some years ago, after losing her beloved husband, she moved to New Jersey to be with her brother, Bobby Parsons, and her precious nephew Stephen (who is like a son to her) and his family. It wasn't an easy transition, for many reasons, mostly failing health. But last year, with Stephen and Bobby's help, Sarah's life was finally on an even keel -- in a beautiful little apartment of her own with her best friend, her Yorkie Lola ;-). With hard work and physical therapy she was independent, getting around with a walker and wheelchair, visiting friends and getting out in her back yard. Mostly, she had made her apartment her "home" -- Sarah treasured everything she could carry with her that she or her mother or grandmother had collected -- over a lifetime she surrounded herself with endless photo albums, family china, knicknacks, linens, artwork and furniture pieces from here and there that she put together beautifully. No matter how small her "living space," her special belongings were always lovingly placed and displayed. It brought her enormous comfort. Then the unthinkable: her little home burned to the ground in a fiery nightmare that she barely escaped. Now she has lost it all. The items are irreplaceable, but she can hold onto the memories if we help her rebuild her life, piece by piece.
Some of you might recognize Sarah as the bubbly field hockey player at Brookline High School, Class of '67 (her profile picture), ALWAYS laughing or making you laugh. Some may remember her as one of the "Three Musketeers": Sarah, me and Cathy Fielding....we were (and still ARE in our hearts) inseparable. We couldn't find many pics of Sarah, but one is when she was one of my bridesmaids ;-) and a couple from the Brookline High Murivian Class of '67 photos. Some may remember Sarah as "Sadie", the flower child, the baker, the dancer who moved to Colorado because "it called her", the chef who could whip up a gourmet dinner from whatever she could find in the fridge....she was, and is, all these things, but right now? she is down for the count....her bubbly spirit is so heavy from this past week, we are in a rush to help.
Of course we are all doing everything we can, but we need a bigger "village" so I'm hoping you'll donate to help do the immediate "stuff": buy some basic clothing, get her back onto her medications (she has survived many health challenges, many operations on her knees and feet) that she needs, and to start rebuilding a safe and enveloping home. Simple things: money for groceries - money for a fridge to keep them in -- it's hard to even imagine where to begin.
Cathy Fielding - the other "amigo" - is my partner in crime here and with her hubby and best friend, John Labadini, is helping put this all together -- my profile pic is with my partner and love of my life, Chris Spinazzola, who rounds out our small posse - we didn't know what else to do, except that we just know we have to do something for Sarah and believe you will all help us reach out, spread the word to friends and family, and together, help us help Sarah rebuild her life.
Thanks SO much for whatever you can do. Huge love & kisses to you all! xoxoxoxo
Organizer and beneficiary
Marjorie Clapprood
Organizer
Boston, MA
Cathy Fielding
Beneficiary