My name is Stephanie and my mother is Teresa.

Teresa has forever been a hard worker, putting Christ at the center of all she does, who was never one to ask for help. She has been in the workforce since she was 16. As early as I can remember, my mother has been dedicated to every project she was a part of and did it with all the love she had. She was a printing press operator until her divorce from my father in 2003 when she decided to go to work for the local school district. Her pay cut was enormous, but her heart was rightly placed. Her goal: to be able to spend as much time with me as much as possible. During this time, she discovered such a love for the children she taught. Whether in PE or the computer lab, she was able to touch the lives of countless students and make a lasting impression. Unfortunately, due to such low pay, she picked up cleaning jobs on the weekends and worked at our church kitchen for Wednesday night dinners. All the while, she never begged anyone for help or asked for a handout. Everything she ever had, aside from gifts, she worked her fingers raw for.

When I graduated, she went to work for the local Justice of the Peace, where she was finally able to take a step back from so much extra work. This position allowed her to work with the public in a meaningful way.

Through all of this, she never ceased to put me first. And no matter what she did, she always managed to show the love of Christ to everyone she met.

In January, mom was diagnosed with moderate-late stage early onset Alzheimer's. The last year and a half has been a Rollercoaster trying to figure out what was happening to her. On top of that, she also began having seizures around the same time as her diagnosis. Thankfully, the seizures have been managed with medication, but as its well known, there is no cure for Alzheimers. For now, she is able to manage/care for her physical well being with reminders, but there is coming a day that she will no longer be able to.

She is currently in assisted living in Texas, moving to be in a facility closer to me and my family (husband and 3 children) in Mississippi. The only issue with that is assisted living facilities are only private pay, and they are not cheap. We have been able to manage it so far, but we are rapidly coming to a time that we will no longer be able to afford her care anymore. After the many years of her care for me, it is now my turn to care for her, but I am unable to in this stage of my life. As much as it pains me, and knowing she would never be one to ask, I am now asking for help for her care.

Please consider helping to fund my mother's assisted living care as we continue to seek God's grace and guidance in this difficult time of my mother's life. ❤️