Kait's Angels Yard Sale Helps Local Families Facing Challenges

MATTITUCK, NY — In many small towns, when one family is faced with an unthinkable blow, the entire community mourns — and then, takes action to help. They come together, bringing food and solace, offering rides and words of comfort and support. And they organize fundraisers, to help those who find themselves suddenly in need able to defray sometimes staggering costs.

Nowhere does this spirit of giving shine more strongly than on the North Fork, where hometown values and a deeply rooted sense of love and loyalty binds friends and neighbors even in the darkest of hours.

But even on the North Fork, where giving back is the norm and community caring is a hallmark of every hamlet, the family of Kaitlyn Doorhy stands as a testament to courage in the face of heartbreak, to the life-changing power of inner grit over adversity.

Joe and Darla Doorhy lost their daughter Kaitlyn five years ago, on Aug. 22; she was hit by a car while away at college. A heavy blanket of grief cloaked the community as all struggled to grasp the loss of a young woman, a former Mattituck Lions Club Strawberry Queen, known for her philanthropic spirit and caring heart.

But tragedy turned to hope when Kait's Angels was formed in Kaitlyn's memory, with an eye toward acts of kindness in her memory.

Once again, Kait's Angels will host a Community Yard Sale to benefit two community members facing challenges. The event takes place on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Doorhy home, located at 1125 Old Jule Lane in Mattituck. An all-you-can carry price of $20 takes place from noon to 2 p.m.

Drop offs take place Friday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. No large items, such as furniture, couches, TVs medical equipment, or baby strollers accepted.

All proceeds this year will benefit Nick Coutts and Keri Stomski. Coutts was injured in a motorcycle crash in June; and Stromski is a kindergarten teacher, wife and mom battling Stage IV breast cancer who chronicles her journey in a blog, "Faith Over Fear."

(Courtesy Tess Bannon)

Nick's mom Tess Bannon described how it felt to have Kait's Angels reach out, especially because Kait and her son were friends.

"Kait would drop in with Nick, kick off her shoes and sit with the brightest smile on her face. It always glowed so bright and inside I’m sure everyone who knew her thought to themselves, "This girl's going places,'" she said. "Nick's face glowed the same when she was around. I noticed everyone's did that was around her. It was infectious."

While Bannon did not know Darla, Kait's mom, at first, she said, "When I first met her I knew where Kait’s smile came from immediately. It is Darla’s smile!"

Darla and her husband Joe, Bannon said, gave that spirit to their children. "It is not something one is born with. It's the environment they learn from — and the Doorhys have always been known for community and family. This is what our job as parents is for — to pass the humility, generosity, and empathy that will last for generations," she said.

Bannon said that when she sees Darla, her heart is heavy with grief and pain over the loss of beautiful Kaitlyn. "I question why we got this miracle. Why I have to watch my son — who in all rights would have died that night on the side of the road — benefit from the loss of a dear friend, a friend he has called his angel when she passed, when life got hard, and when he came out of his coma. Nick saw Darla recently and told her he wanted to donate at least half of the funds back to Kait's Angels. Darla smiled at him and said, 'You need this. You have a lot to get through. And besides, I've got plans for how you can help.'"

Darla's strength, Bannon said, as well as the ability to stand strong in the face of adversity and help families "who would not have had the strength without her beautiful smile and eyes saying, 'I get you, I feel you, I got you,' is the most authentic part of her and her beautiful family."

Her son, Bannon said, was also the recipient of proceeds raised at the Coutts’ Corner Poker Run event. Nick and she agreed that they would like to pay it forward every year; next year, they will organize the 2nd annual Coutts’ Corner Poker Run for another family in need, she said. "It's how our community does things. We leave no family down and that part of the love and generosity received did not surprise me one bit."

(Courtesy Keri Stromski)

Stromski was also touched by the outpouring of caring from Kait's Angels.

"We were surprised, humbled and grateful to be selected," she said. "Kait's Angels is such a wonderful organization. They dropped off some food and some toys with Santa the month I was told I was Stage IV. I cried at the generosity of Kaits' Angels, and all the people who took time out to drop off the blessings."

In addition, Kait's Angels also supplied Aquebogue Elementary School, where Stromski teaches kindergarten, with a "Buddy Bench," where any child who feels lonely at recess can sit and find a friend.

(Courtesy Keri Stromski)

"Darla was a friend before her daughter passed, and has become a blessing since," Stromski said. "We don’t have the same situation, but we both know grief. We’ve learned how you don’t ever get 'over' hard times, but you get through them. We all have choices to make regarding how we react to situations. Darla took a tragedy and has made so many people’s lives better, all in her daughter’s memory. Darla is the head angel of Kait's Angels. I love her."

(Courtesy Keri Stromski)