When Hurricane Irma hit Florida, many in the area were forced to evacuate and seek safety. For a non-profit that houses orphans such as the SOS Children’s Village, that meant the kids were left to sleep in cars or fend for themselves.
Marc Bell, millionaire and board member at the organization, got a call informing him of the situation. Without a second thought, he told the organizers to bring the kids to his house.
Marc and his wife, Jennifer, knew that the 27,000-square-foot mansion had more than enough room for the 70 kids. The couple was only supposed to house the kids for a few hours, and they thought it’d be no big deal.
Marc said “They were hungry. They were tired”. He continued “They lived in the gymnasium for a week. They hadn’t showered for a week and you saw how excited they were.”
For three days, the kids were still there and Marc and Jennifer were having the time of their lives. Their mansion was full of life and laughter — much of it coming from the homeowners themselves.
They ordered food and desserts, as well as entertainment for the younger kids. For these orphans, who have likely never experienced the lavish lifestyle that the Bells take for granted, it was a true fantasy.
Jennifer told People “We did birthdays for all of the kids because some had birthdays that week.” She said “On the last night there was this one little boy [who had a birthday] and I said, ‘Make a wish.’ He pulled me down and he said, ‘I just want my mommy to come home.’ ”
When the power came back on and it was time for the kids to go back to SOS Children’s Villages, Jennifer and Marc didn’t stop their charitable efforts. They started a GoFundMe page to help get the children food and clothes, and chipped in their own money for something a little more special.
Some of the girls wanted Hello Kitty cars, and Jennifer followed through with a massive stack of the toys and surprised the kids on their last day.
“All of the sudden you see all of these young kids all coming out on the cars driving with such joy in their faces,” Jennifer reported. “The surprise was amazing.”
This act of charity had clearly as much of an effect on Marc and Jennifer as it did on the lives of the kids they helped. Jennifer said, “I think it made us smile more than it made the kids smile,” confirmed as much.
Jennifer plans to continue her work with the SOS Children’s Village. She’s collecting Xbox’s and Wii’s for some of the older kids, and planning an ice cream party for the girls and a pool party for the rest.
She explaineed “Anyone can write a check, but when you go the Village, you see it,” she said. “It touched their hearts to see the kids so happy.”
Surrogate Mom Gives Birth to ‘Twins’ — Then Learns One Baby Is Her Own Biological Child
While carrying a baby as a surrogate for a Chinese couple, Jessica Allen became pregnant with her own son – launching an “emotional” battle to get her baby boy back.
During an interview with ABC News “I didn’t even know I was pregnant with [him],” Allen, from California, said through tears. “I carried my own child and I didn’t know he was mine.”
Due to a medical phenomenon known as superfetation — when a woman continues to ovulate after becoming pregnant, Allen, a mother of two, was surprised to learn that she had gotten pregnant with her own child while carrying as a surrogate.
The babies were initially believed to be simply twins.
“The chance of an embryo splitting is very small, but it does happen,” Allen told ABC. “I was very surprised.”
Last December, she gave birth and handed the babies over to the couple. However, seeing a photo of the growing boys, Allen was perplexed.
“I did notice that one was much lighter than the other,” Allen said of the babies — one is Chinese and the other is black and white. “You know, obviously they were not identical twins.”
She and her husband, Wardell Jasper, later learned that one of the boys belonged to them, with a DNA test confirmed the news, ABC reports. They then fought to get their son back in a legal battle they described as “emotional.” In February, they were finally granted custody of the little boy in February.
Allen told ABC of the baby they named Malachi “He’s just so smart, so intelligent”. She continued “He’s learning fast. He’s got two big brothers to run after and learn from.”
Allen first shared her story with the New York Post, telling the outlet that “Wardell and I, who got married in April, weren’t planning to expand our family so soon, but we treasure Malachi with all our hearts.”
She added “I don’t regret becoming a surrogate mom because that would mean regretting my son”. She continued “I just hope other women considering surrogacy can learn from my story.”