We all like to think that we’ll have friends and family to take care of us when we’re too old to do everything ourselves.
Unfortunately, that’s not always the reality, as was the case for 90-year-old Agnes Maples. As per reports, a family member had been storing trash at her home for years, leading to it becoming a dump site of debris.
She was facing daily fines because a relative had used her home to dump trash and debris.
Her yard had a significant amount of rotting and rusted junk. People over the years had dumped trash and used the widow’s property to store things without giving her any sort of compensation. The widow’s other family members refused to help her with removing the trash.
The widow’s neighbors were tired of seeing all of the junk in her yard, but instead of helping her, they complained to the city, and the city officials were quick to take action. Unfortunately, the widow was threatened with fines of more than $2,000 each day the awful mess was not cleaned up.
Given Agnes’s age, she couldn’t possibly clear the trash herself.
Worse, her house was falling into disrepair too. With her husband passed on and no one around to help, the situation became dire indeed.
Agnes knew she needed to do something about her situation but did not know where to turn. Thankfully, however, she came across Operation Blessing, which according to The Christian Broadcasting Network, got some help from Regent University volunteers and did a few little extras for Agnes.
They cleaned out the 90-year-old’s yard, tore down her old shed and the trailer on her property. All of this Agnes had agreed to.
Then a miracle occurred.
Agnes went out to her property and discovered many more volunteers began showing up. These were individuals who Agnes never requested to help or expected would show up at her house. It appears the people at Operation Blessing had not told Agnes they were going to request some extra assistance.
Not only did these volunteers do the bare minimum of what Agnes needed, but they also were busy building her a brand new pathway to her backyard. They also planted some flowerbeds in Agnes’s garden. All the debris that had been laying outside of her home had been removed.
Operation Blessing went on to repair her roof so that it wouldn’t leak water.
They also gifted her a new air-conditioning system for those hot summer days, and turned her garden into a paradise of flowers and neat walkways.
These were all people willing to help and provide assistance to a widow in her 90s in a very difficult situation. Volunteers from this organization did more than was requested of them. They did this to help in a selfless and loving manner and were able to drastically change the life of a woman in the process. It may have been a small thing for the volunteers but it was a huge thing for Agnes.
Agnes had only one request when asked, “They asked me what I needed. And I said, ‘I need an air conditioner. Please get me an air conditioner. And they surprised me with one,” Agnes said. “God bless them and they’re wonderful. And I love them all. I’ve been blessed and blessed and God has never left me. He’s still with me.” This story shows that the power of community coming together cannot be overlooked and is worth celebrating
