Yaakov and Shoshi Siluk may seem like regular teenagers, but their lives are far from normal. Having lost their father to illness when they were both babies, they grew up with only their mother, Sara. Sara mourned the loss of her husband but had no choice but to carry on. She worked long hours to support her kids. A few years ago, however, a stroke left the mother of 10 wheelchair-bound and unable to work.
Since her stroke Sara has stayed mostly at home, where her teenage children have helped her to achieve the necessary daily tasks. Though she is pained that her own kids must spend their days tending to her needs, she has no other choice. The family is too poor to avoid professional medical assistance. Without a parent in the home bringing home a paycheck, the Siluk kids have learned to get by on very, very little. It is truly shocking that in 2018, a disabled Jewish widow and her children can suffer in such appalling poverty. Until now, however, their story was hidden.
Daughter Rikki, 25, made the choice recently to go public with their details. Feeling that something had to be done, she told their heart wrenching story on a Chesed Fund page.
Donations to the page are being used to give the family some basic financial stability, and to provide Sara with medical assistance. To say that it would change their lives would be understatement.