Loss and a Long Flight
Mary went into early labor just hours after landing in Florida. She was rushed to the hospital, and despite the doctors’ efforts, she died giving birth to their daughter.
Grief would have to wait.
Bob boarded the first flight to Florida, barely able to think. His wife was gone. His daughter, just born. When he arrived at the hospital, he was introduced to Mrs. Sticks—an 82-year-old volunteer at the neonatal ICU who had been by Mary’s side in her final moments.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” she told him gently. “Your wife had complications.”
Bob wept. And she waited. Patient, steady.
Eventually, she handed him a slip of paper. “My number. Call me if you need anything.”
He didn’t think he would.
Refused at the Gate
Three days later, Bob stood at the airport, exhausted but determined to return to Texas with his newborn.
“Is this your child?” the woman at the gate asked.
“Yes, of course.”
“I’m sorry, sir,” she replied. “She’s only four days old. You’ll need her birth certificate, and she must be at least seven days old to fly.”
Bob felt the floor fall from under him.
He had no hotel booked. No friends or family nearby. No idea what to do next.
Then he remembered the old woman from the hospital. Mrs. Sticks.
An Unexpected Angel
When Bob called, Mrs. Sticks didn’t hesitate.
“I’ll come get you,” she said.
That night, she welcomed him and his daughter into her home. She found a crib. Helped with bottles. Sat beside him in silence when he needed it.
She even arranged to have Mary’s body transported back to Texas—something Bob hadn’t had the strength to figure out.
In those days of grief and newborn chaos, Bob found peace in her kindness. Her home became a haven. They took long walks. Visited her late husband’s grave. Shared stories. Laughed. Cried.
Bob’s daughter would beam every time Mrs. Sticks entered the room.
“She’s an angel,” he often said.
A Lasting Bond
A week later, with the proper documents in hand, Bob flew back home. But he never forgot Mrs. Sticks.
He returned every year with his daughter to visit the woman who’d saved them. Over time, he grew close to her family—especially her oldest daughter, Shirley.
Warm, wise, and just as generous, Shirley reminded him of everything he loved about her mother. Friendship turned to love.
Years later, they married. Shirley became a mother to his six children, and together, they honored her mother’s legacy.
Full Circle
When Mrs. Sticks passed away, a lawyer approached Bob at the funeral. She had left him part of her inheritance—just as she had for her own children.
In her honor, Bob and Shirley used the funds to start a foundation for foster children and grieving parents, keeping her spirit alive in every life they touched.
“Compassion still thrives in this world,” Bob once thought.
Thanks to Mrs. Sticks, he never stopped believing it.