最新杏吧原创

Scott, Smith, and daughter Mira, 1, left Chicago in late June and moved in with Scott鈥檚 mother. They stored nearly all their belongings in the basement while Smith started a new job, saving up money for a place of their own.

Then the flood hit. Sewage and rainwater filled the basement and first floor. 鈥淓verything we had washed away,鈥� said Scott, 34. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not even sure what we even still have.鈥�

They lost three cars in the flood. The house is in disrepair. Cracks in warped doorways let the night air in. Scott鈥檚 mother, Joanna Szapszewicz, 68, is trying to salvage what remains of the photos and papers collected by her parents, Polish immigrants who came to 最新杏吧原创 after surviving the Holocaust.

Scott worries she鈥檚 been too distracted to be a good mother to Mira. There鈥檚 too much to do to try to rebuild.

鈥淚t really just messed up our whole lives,鈥� she said.

Szapszewicz, Scott, Smith and Mira are just one of 100 families in the region determined to be in dire need by the United Way of Greater 最新杏吧原创 and its partners. And for four weeks starting Sunday, their stories will be featured in the Post-Dispatch as part of the 100 Neediest Cases, an annual effort coordinating 58 social services agencies, school districts and nonprofits to deliver goods and cash assistance to thousands of families facing crushing hardships: homelessness and hunger, job layoffs and overdue bills, illnesses and the death of loved ones.

The 100 cases are only a fraction of the 4,682 families that could benefit this year.

Some families face lingering financial and health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

And thousands are reeling from the historic flash flooding that devastated the region July 26, wrecking homes, displacing families and leaving piles of ruined furniture, appliances and clothing in its wake.

鈥淭he need is even greater this year,鈥� said Erin Smith, vice president of communications for the United Way. 鈥淔amilies who were struggling before may be struggling even more now.鈥�

Some families can鈥檛 afford even the most basic things, she said.

For LueGuester Hyde, that鈥檚 a refrigerator.

The July flood swept through her one-story rental home, carried off belongings and wrecked her refrigerator and car, which she鈥檇 relied on to work jobs as a home aid and food delivery driver.

Her yard is full of ruined furniture and appliances. When it rains, Hyde picks up the smell of mildew. Bugs are crawling in through cracks and warped sections of wood, she said.

And bills are piling up.

鈥淚t鈥檚 stressful,鈥� said Hyde, 44. 鈥淚鈥檓 trying to figure out how to do this and do that at the same time. Trying to keep my blood pressure down.鈥�

Her daughter鈥檚 bed mattress was ruined. It had been laid on a carpet while Hyde waited for a bed frame to be delivered, a purchase she鈥檇 saved up for to try to help her daughter, 9, turn the room into a 鈥渂ig girl room.鈥�

Her son, 16, a member of the school basketball team, lost his basketball shoes. The hoop outside was knocked down and wrecked.

Christmas looks 鈥渞eal bad,鈥� for her family, she said.

鈥淭he holidays are coming,鈥� Hyde said. 鈥淎nd we can鈥檛 keep paying money to lease a refrigerator and pay my bills at the same time.鈥�

In total 1,100 families can be adopted by donors who will be sent a list of that individual鈥檚 or family鈥檚 requests. Donors are asked to provide at least one gift for each person.

Among them are a teen, 17, who is now the sole caregiver for her five younger siblings, ages 6 to 14, after the unexpected death of her mother in August, and a single mother of two who lost her car and job in the aftermath of the fatal shooting of her eldest son in July, a year after losing her brother to gun violence.

Another 3,600 families will get cash assistance to help pay for basic needs. Even small contributions add up.

Last year, the 100 Neediest Cases campaign raised more than $1.6 million, and at least 1,000 cases were adopted by donors ranging from individuals to groups and nonprofits to corporations.

Donors gave cars and appliances to people working to feed, clothe and care for their families; clothing and groceries to people struggling with housing or addiction; bikes and dolls to children who just want the joy of a toy for the holidays.

Szapszewicz, Scott鈥檚 mother, was among them. She鈥檇 been a longtime donor since her 20s; the stories always broke her heart, she said.

It feels odd to her family to now be on the other end.

Ask her family about the hardship they鈥檝e faced since the flood, and they鈥檒l count the ways they鈥檙e lucky. They鈥檙e safe together. They鈥檝e got a roof over their heads, family and friends who鈥檝e helped them.

They lost their belongings, but 鈥渨e were fortunate enough to have those things to lose,鈥� Scott said.

Leaning on the wall of the living room is a warped painting of her mom, Maria, at age 16, a year before war broke out in Europe, before Nazis made Jews wear stars and Maria and her family were sent to Auschwitz.

After coming to 最新杏吧原创, Maria and Jacob Szapszewicz helped countless other immigrants settle here and build new lives.

And they were among the earliest Holocaust survivors to start giving their testimonies locally, speaking whenever they could at the 最新杏吧原创 Holocaust Museum and Learning Center in Creve Coeur and at schools to educate people and work toward a future.

Joanna Szapszewicz draws strength from the lessons her parents taught her about hope and perseverance.

鈥淭hey made whole new lives for themselves,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey never looked back, and we have to do that, too.鈥�