Community Rallies Around NJ Siblings After They Lose Both Parents In 3 Weeks

WALL, NJ — The New Jersey community is rallying around a group of siblings after they lost both their parents in the span of three weeks.

Since 2001, Scott Hendricks has raised his kids in their Wall Township home, creating a place filled with "love, laughter, and memories that will last a lifetime," a GoFundMe started to support the family reads.

Subscribe

In recent years, however, Scott faced significant health challenges, leading to both emotional and financial strains for the family.

Just three weeks after his passing, the siblings' mother, Shannon, unexpectedly died of a stroke on Aug. 27.

"In the span of just three weeks, these children have lost both of their parents," Jenn Stevenson Payne, a family friend and the fundraiser organizer, said.

"There are now five children who are trying to navigate life without their parents — the four children Scott and Shannon shared, along with Ashley, Shannon's daughter from a previous relationship."

For Ashley, this loss is particularly devastating, Payne said, as she lost her biological father, Vinny, several years ago and has now lost Scott and Shannon as well.

Following their parents' passing, the kids have been faced with funeral expenses, medical bills, and the responsibility of trying to keep their family home.

The GoFundMe has been started to help support the kids with these costs.

Any contribution, no matter the size, would help ease that financial burden, Payne said.

The family is aiming to help keep the siblings together and keep their home as a place of "stability, familiarity, and comfort while they navigate the difficult road ahead."

"Our original goal was to help these children after losing their father. None of us could have imagined that just three weeks later, we would be facing the loss of their mother as well," Payne said. "Their circumstances have changed dramatically, and they need our support now more than ever."

"The goal of this fundraiser is to help ease some of that financial pressure so that the family can focus on what matters most right now — grieving, supporting one another, and finding their way forward together."

The fundraiser has a goal of $40,000. As of Thursday morning, $37,659 has been raised.

"Scott and Shannon were my friends for a lifetime," Payne said. "I loved them, and my heart breaks knowing their children are now facing the rest of their lives without either of them."

"We can't take away their pain or bring their parents back," she continued. "But together, we can help give these children some financial breathing room during an unimaginable time and help preserve the stability of the home and family they have left."

"They have already lost more than any child should ever have to endure. Please help us surround them with the love, support, and financial assistance they need as they begin to build a future without their parents."

"Thank you from the bottom of my heart for standing beside them," Payne said.

To access the GoFundMe, you can click here.