Iris McFarland was browsing Facebook when she came across a post about a family living on the streets. She eventually found the family of five at a park and opened her own home to the three children.
“And so she was kind of like left with no choice of ‘can you take my children for me because I can’t have them in the cold any longer’,” said McFarland.
The oldest sibling of the three said he and his two sisters have been living on the streets with their parents for the past year.
“People always looked at us weird and said that our parents were bad parents and stuff and they’re really not,” said the 11-year old. “Nobody really wants to help,” he added.
And life on the streets isn’t easy for them.
“Like you never know where you are going to be the next day, your just constantly walking. All you have is what you can carry and if you can’t carry it, you don’t get it,” said the 11-year old.
After McFarland spoke with the mother and father, they agreed to let their children stay with her.
The kids came in with just a suitcase of a few clothes and shoes.
While McFarland said she’s glad they are now off the streets, she hopes that others can be just as kind to help their parents get back on their feet.
“Caring isn’t always money and things. Caring is just sometimes being nice and courteous and understanding that sometimes it’s not your fault in your situation,” said McFarland.
“I just want people to be more like her, to help people that are down on their luck,” said the 11-year old.
UPDATE: A GoFundMe campaign reached its goal and is no longer active.
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