Corpus Christi grandparents won custody of three kids. Then came the cancer diagnosis.

Faith is celebrating her ninth birthday on Thanksgiving Day.

Her grandparents, Ben and Marie, usually make cakes for her and her siblings’ birthdays, buy them presents and “take us everywhere,” Faith said. A couple of her favorite places are Peter Piper Pizza and Sonic.

“But this year’s different,” Marie reminded her.

The family anticipated a quiet holiday. 

Ben, 58, was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in August and began chemotherapy treatments in November. With his immune system at risk, Marie was limiting visitors to the house. 

“I just pray to God that he gives him strength to live a little longer, especially now that the holidays are coming,” Marie said. “I hope nothing ugly happens, especially with all this COVID and everything. It’s just so scary.”

After various family conflicts, Marie, 53, won custody of the girls, as well as their brother, 17-year-old Anthony.

A couple of years ago, Marie operated a food truck from which she sold ice cream, nachos and sometimes ceviche. Now a disability has made her unable to work. 

She relies on monthly government assistance, including disability benefits, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and food stamps. The Nueces County Department of Social Services helped the family with electric and utility bills for a month. To make a few extra bucks, Marie sometimes sells chicken plates (she still has her food handler license), which she advertises on Facebook.

To support a household of five, she said, “that’s not enough.”

“I just try my best. God’s always by my side,” Marie said. “My mom used to always say, ‘When one eats, everybody eats.’ Even if it’s tortillas and gravy with no meat, it’s OK.”

Ben sleeps on a rented hospital bed in the living room, which costs $100 a month, and needs medicine that costs $513 — as well as a monthly PET scan to detect the spread of his cancer, which costs more than $500 after Medicare coverage. That’s almost as much as Marie’s monthly mortgage payment.

A doctor gave the couple a letter confirming Ben’s cancer diagnosis, which could help him qualify for aid from foundations such as the American Cancer Society.

Last year, the county social services department gave Marie a gift card to buy Christmas presents for the kids. One of the gifts she chose was a Barbie camper playset, which Faith and her 10-year-old sister, Fate, still love to play with.

On a warm November afternoon, Faith and Fate settled on mismatched couches in the pink-walled living room, flanked by their grandfather’s hospital bed and their grandmother’s rolling walker. A small white kitten wove around the family members’ legs before settling on Fate’s lap.

Both girls hope to get more Barbies for Christmas, as well as computers for schoolwork. Two weeks before the Thanksgiving break, their school reverted to remote lessons for all students after an employee tested positive for COVID-19. Without technology at home to submit assignments, Faith and Fate had to pick up homework packets.

The girls also wanted fresh clothes for school and L.O.L. Surprise dolls, popular ball-shaped toys with a small doll hidden inside. And Fate hoped for a nail set.

With a laugh, Marie mused that Anthony, who had gone out for a haircut, would like cologne for Christmas “because he always likes to smell good.”

Asked what makes her family special, Faith said, “Mostly everything.” Her grandparents buy the kids treats, she said, but they also take them to church, or just cruising around the neighborhood.

“They love us and provide for us,” Fate said. “They do a lot of stuff for us.”

The children represent thousands who will be helped by the Caller-Times Children's Christmas Appeal. The names of the families profiled have been changed to protect their privacy.

Since 1973, the Caller-Times has reported the struggle of needy children and their families during the holiday season. All the money donated to the Christmas Appeal campaign benefits the children; all overhead costs are borne by the Caller-Times, United Way of the Coastal Bend and participating agencies. This year, the Nueces County Record Star and the Alice Echo-News Journal joined the campaign.

Participating agencies include Boys & Girls Club of Alice, Duval County Christmas Committee, the Kleberg County Welfare Department, Nueces County Department of Social Services, the Odyssey After School Enrichment Program in Rockport, Sinton for Youth Inc. and the Purple Door.

HOW TO DONATE

Here are three ways to help:

*Fill out the donation form. Make your check or money order payable to Children’s Christmas Appeal and mail to: United Way of Coastal Bend, 4659 Everhart Road, Corpus Christi, TX, 78411 (designate funds to Children's Christmas Appeal).

*Donate online at www.uwcb.org. Look for the Christmas Appeal logo.

*Text ChristmasAppeal (no spaces) to 41444 to make a donation.