CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — Tragedy struck for a family in Chesapeake earlier this month when their father died after a battle with cancer.
He left behind six children and no other guardian, but another family has stepped up and taken in all six kids in addition to the three they already have.
Now, the family is asking the community for help building onto their home so they have have space to raise their recently-enlarged family.
The Brown and Moore family met eight years ago. They quickly built a strong relationship over the years. Now, the Brown family believes they met so they could be there for the Moores during their darkest hour.
In 2017, Carl Moore could be heard on tape for his church describing his journey.
“I’m a single father of my children. Life is very different now. Things have turned around, things are getting much better, peace is here,” he said.
For about four years, Carl Moore lived in faith and that newfound peace with his six children.
Earlier this month he lost his battle with cancer, leaving his six six kids with no place to go.
“As he was getting closer to his death, he would tell me ‘Son, whatever happens, I just want you to look after the family keep them together. I don’t want y’all to get split up,'” his eldest son De’Angelo recounted to 10 On Your Side.
Carl Moore also made the plea to his pastor and friend Joel Brown.
“Four years ago, I remember a conversation he had with me and knew he had been struggling with cancer and he just told me, he said, ‘Joel, if anything ever happens to me, I want you to take care of my kids,'” said Joel Brown.
When the Browns heard the news of Carl Moore’s death, they knew what they had to do.
“I was reminded that in the Bible, it talks about how the church is supposed to take care of widows and orphans, and I just felt very strongly that this was what God was telling us to do,” said Sarah Brown, Joel’s wife.
In addition to their three kids, the Browns now house nine teenagers, with very little room.
So, they are making plans to expand.
“We are literally going to add on a room downstairs and upstairs so it’ll be a two-story add,” said Joel Brown.
It’s a big project and all very sudden, there is no way we can do this alone,” he said.
But this extended family lives on faith, “When my pops was around, he told me to always have faith. You can have faith but not always believe it, so what something may seem, it not always is,” said De’Angelo Moore.
“I said ‘Do you think it’s happenstance that in 2013, we met at a park and [developed] this relationship over the last few years to where we could be in lance to actually see this thing through?’ I don’t think it’s by chance,” said Joel.
They say they think they’ll need $90,000 to make the improvements they need to house everyone comfortably. If you would like to donate to their cause, click here.