Imagine the panic. You wake one night to the smash of breaking windows and squeals of frightened children. It can't be your house? But it is.
David grabbed his phone to call the Gardaí. His wife ran to calm the children. Nearly every window in the house was broken. He saw two men in hoods running down the driveway. Then it was all quiet.
The Gardai arrived to survey the scene. This sort of attack was common in the area in the past month. But the other victims were all connected with local crime. David's family wasn't. Mistaken identity was the verdict given.
Not for this family. David receives social welfare and managing money for the whole family is difficult. Replacing so many windows at once would be too expensive. And without them, the house would not be safe for his family to live in.
David didn't know where to turn.
He considered returning to his father's home. But it would be over-crowded, and David's father was terminally ill.
His last resort was to move out of the house and split up the family. There are no emergency accommodation units in their area they could live in as a family. David would move into the local St Vincent de Paul men's homeless hostel. His wife and children would move into the women's refuge centre. Such a tough decision brought so much agony to the family.
Thankfully, kind-hearted support such as yours was there to stop this happening.
A friend suggested David contact SVP for help. He was put in touch with his local Conference. Two volunteers visited the family. They used kind donations, such as yours, to give the family vouchers for food and other living costs. This allowed David to find the money needed to replace the windows himself.
Today the family are still together and living in the house. Your grace and generosity saved them from becoming homeless in this moment of crisis.
Please consider a gift today and help ensure people like David receive the support they need. Thank you.
Based on a true story from a family helped by SVP. Names and some details have been changed for confidentiality.