Mother facing surgery this week found help in Salvation Army

One Midlands family whose lives have been a roller coaster the past few years received assistance at a critical time.

Stacy Stafford of Irmo said she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis a couple years ago. Her family lost their home to a fire a year ago, which destroyed everything they owned.

“(My family) was outside at 7 a.m. in the rain,” she said. “Thank God we had insurance.”

She said the loss took a hit on her family’s finances and they were finally getting back on their feet when Stafford found out her oldest son had died the week before Christmas.

Shortly after, she was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

“I went to the endocrinologist who told me I have pancreatic cancer,” she said.

On top of dealing with the emotional stress of the past couple years and medical bills, utilities also started piling up.

Stafford said a friend encouraged her to visit the Salvation Army of the Midlands to do something she was not comfortable doing: ask for help.

She said the Salvation Army, through its Woodyard Fund, was able and willing to help her pay her utility bills.

“Normally we are the ones who reach out and try to help people when we can,” she said. “We don’t usually ask for assistance like that.”

Stafford said she knew the Salvation Army helped during disaster relief through family members but did not know they helped with utilities. She said Salvation Army employees not only helped her financially but emotionally.

“(Director of Program Services Melanie Miller) told me everything was going to be O.K.,” she said. “We sat and prayed.”

Stafford is scheduled to have surgery done Wednesday to have two-thirds of her pancreas removed.

Stafford, who is waiting for short-term disability benefits, is taking leave from her job and her husband is doing all he can to help.

“It took a lot of weight off me and my husband,” she said. “My husband is killing himself (at work) to take as much pressure off of me. I can’t even tell you how much it helped.”

Because she has been in the position of the helper and the help recipient, she encouraged anyone who is able to donate to the fund to help families like hers.

“You don’t know when it’s going to be you,” she said.

The Woodyard Fund helps residents in crisis in Richland, Lexington, Fairfield and Newberry counties pay for utilities. The fund dates to 1816, when the Ladies Benevolent Society provided firewood and coal to families in need. In 1930, The State newspaper’s editor, William E. Gonzales, began publicizing the fund. It became a tradition the newspaper continues every winter.

This story was originally published March 6, 2016 at 7:00 PM.