This is still one of the saddest stories I can remember. These poor children. At the bottom of the article there is information on where to donate. Even if you can only send $10 – I think you should.
FROM THE BOSTON HERALD
‘Mommy and daddy are angels’
Kin rally around twins orphaned by plane crash
Ten days have passed since Bob and Donna Gregory kissed their 4-year-old twins goodbye and boarded a small plane that was supposed to fly them from Long Island to an appointment at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Federal investigators think it may take nine months to explain why this mission of mercy ended in a horrific ball of fire at the edge of a supermarket parking lot in Easton.
Harry Gregory knows it will take much longer than that before Amanda and Bobby Jr. Gregory, his little grandniece and nephew, are able to process the answer to a question they wake up asking:
“When are Mommy and Daddy coming home?”
“It’s tough right now,” Harry Gregory said in a voice filled with heartache. “Our biggest concern has been trying to figure out how Bobby Jr. and Amanda are going to react as time passes.
“When they ask about Mommy and Daddy each morning,” Harry explained, “we say that their Mommy and Daddy are angels. We try, as best we can, to let them know that even though they may not be able to see Mommy and Daddy right now, they are right here and always with them.”
Harry Gregory watched his nephew and godson, Bob Sr., battle leukemia for eight years. In the middle of that struggle, he saw life bless Bobby and his wife, Donna. Their dream of having a family was doubly fulfilled with the births of twins Bobby Jr. and Amanda.
Over these past 10 days, Harry said a loving swarm of grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins has found some respite from their own grief and bewilderment by enfolding an orphaned brother and sister. “The children are not just the center of attention,” Harry said, “right now, they are our heart and soul.”
Yet, he added that he’s in no rush to explain to them something he will never completely be able to fathom. “No,” Harry sighed, “it’s not time to tell Bobby and Amanda why they can’t see their parents. ‘They’re angels,’ we say. ‘It’s hard to see angels, but they’re always here, always right beside you, watching over you every minute. Mommy and Daddy see you all the time.’
“They’re only 4,” Harry said, pain choking off his voice for a moment. “No, they don’t really understand. Still, in their eyes sometimes, you can see they know something isn’t right.”
Of all the mercy flights Bob Gregory made to Boston, his uncle finds himself wondering why Donna chose to join her husband on that fateful one. “Usually, when it was just a back-and-forth visit, like that one was going to be, Donna stayed home with the kids.”
Even when the feds come back with a reason, they will never have an answer to what will always gnaw at the heart of a wounded uncle.
Four days ago, Joyce Podlas, the Gregorys’ neighbor in Riverhead, N.Y., and Donna’s friend since junior high, attended a memorial service that brought her no closure.
“It’s still like I’m living a bad dream,” Joyce said yesterday. “I finally was able to cry, yes, but I still can’t believe they’re gone. It’s just too awful, too horrible. It’s a tragedy when a child loses one parent. But to lose two . . . I don’t know how to deal with that.”
Joyce’s own twins may help to see her through. Joyce Poldas has already received a request from Donna’s mother, Evelyn McGregor. “She’s asked me to bring my son and daughter, who are the same age, over to play with Bobby and Amanda,” Joyce said. “The kids will have fun, but it will be strange for me to be in Bob and Donna’s house and not have them there.”
Just where an orphaned twin sister and brother will ultimately grow up has not been decided, Harry Gregory said. “Just ask people to pray for them,” Harry asked. And if you were touched by this story, you might consider sending a donation to: The Gregory Children’s Trust Fund, P.O. Box 633, Aquebogue, N.Y., 11931.
Article URL: http://www.bostonherald.com/news/opinion/columnists/view.bg?articleid=1114434
