Retirement is supposed to be a time when people are able to relax and enjoy the fruits of decades of work and savings. But sometimes, things don’t always go as planned.
After working for decades, supporting a family, and saving as much as possible, a Canadian couple planned to live off those savings for the remainder of their golden years. However, when life threw them a curve-ball, they had to make some tough choices to come up with money quickly. When the community heard about their sacrifice, however, it stepped up in ways the couple never imagined.
Love at First Sight
When Brent Keryluke met a woman named Nicole in January of 2005, it was love at first sight. Not only was Nicole beautiful, but Brent loved that she shared all the same interests as him. Whenever she got the chance, Nicole loved going camping, fishing, hiking, and biking.
Shared Interests
Brent loved dirt biking, sports, downhill skiing, and mixed martial arts. “He loved muscle cars, mechanics, motorcycles, family bicycle rides, longboarding, fitness and family Sunday sports day … followed by a cold beer,” Brent’s family said about him in a statement.
A Perfect Match
Brent and Nicole were a perfect match, and their relationship quickly got serious. After a few years of dating, the pair decided to get married and started their life together on April 12, 2008. In the years that followed, the pair continued to share their love of life and even started a family together.
Perfect Day For a Ride
Even after having two kids, Brent and Nicole always had the energy to get outside and do their favorite outdoor activities. And in May 2018, the couple decided to make the most of the nice weather and a freezing Canadian winter. On that afternoon, they went out for a ride on Brent’s motorcycle.
A Tragic Accident
Going out for a ride together was one of Brent and Nicole’s favorite activities to do together. However, when they went out on May 5, it ended up being the last thing the 35- and 34-year-old ever did. “They passed away together with her arms around him, doing something they loved while living full-on,” the couple’s family wrote on a GoFundMe page.
A Head-On Collision
The couple had been traveling westbound on their motorcycle on Highway 590 when they collided with a truck traveling eastbound. According to the police, the truck attempted to turn northbound on Range Road 260. While making the left turn, the truck ended up hitting Nicole and Brent.
Twice as Painful
The pair were instantly killed in the tragic crash. “The guy turned left in front of him and it was a head-on collision. They had no chance,” Ben Keryluke, Brent’s father, told Global News. “It’s always hard to hear that news, especially when it’s both of them. You think one would make it, but both, that’s pretty difficult.”
The Only Way Forward
When the family heard the tragic news, they were devastated. What made it all worse, however, was the fact that Brent and Nicole’s young son and daughter were now orphans. However, in the wake of the accident, Brent’s parents, Ben and Marilyn Keryluke, decided they would raise 3-year-old Liam and 6-year-old Arielle.
A New Plan
At that point, Ben and Marilyn had been planning to live out the rest of their lives relaxing in retirement. However, when the accident happened, their plans changed and they became the children’s primary caregivers. “The reality is slowly becoming their new normal. The tragic truth has still not fully set in for them as the days are filled with the busy-ness of these two spirited children along with the necessary legal administrations that are part of the process,” the family described in an update.
Raising Funds
Ben and Marilyn were determined to do whatever it took to keep the family together. However, they hadn’t planned to be raising two young kids at that point in their lives and they didn’t have the savings to do it. So the family decided to create a GoFundMe to raise money so that the grandparents would be able to raise the children.
An Added Complication
“It takes a village … they will need help with the costs of care,” the family wrote on the GoFundMe page. As if raising two kids wasn’t already expensive, both children were born with hearing problems.“It takes a lot of money to raise two kids, especially two kids with hearing problems.”
A New Normal
“The new normal brings tender, loving moments, full days, exhaustion, deep sadness along with laughter and joy of these children that are reminders of the beautiful parents they shared. Their memory will be constantly refreshed so that Arielle and Liam can hold them close to their hearts always,” the family explained. “Any donation will be so much appreciated.”
The Donations
Since the accident, strangers have donated over $83,000. “It’s a long road for the kids … the GoFundMe page has raised more money than we ever could on our own,” Ben told Global News. “We really appreciate it … people are still donating and there are a lot of people who are still fundraising.”
Back to Work
According to the grandparents, all the money raised will be used on raising the children and creating a trust fund for them. But even with the donations, the couple needed to come up with more money. So Ben decided to go back to work full time.
A Tough Decision
While facing expensive medical costs because of the children’s conditions, Ben and Marilyn had to make another difficult choice. Before the accident, Brent had bought and was restoring a 1973 Pontiac Parisienne. They didn’t want to get rid of the car but decided to auction it off as they needed the money.
The Auction
One Saturday afternoon, the couple brought the car to Electric Garage Auctions to sell it in a live auction. However, when the Pontiac was next up to be auctioned, the staff decided to stop everything to tell the audience the back story of the car and its former owners. “They basically stopped the auction, let everybody know what was happening, where the money was going to go, and then we were shocked what happened after that,” Ben told Global News.
Overwhelming Generosity
What happened next, however, left everyone speechless. “The car was sold for $29,000 and then was donated back. Then it was sold for $30,000 and donated back. Then it went for $20,000 and donated back again,” Ben said. “People were overwhelmed with just the generosity of people of central Alberta and the support that this family has,” Lyndsay Payne, co-owner of EG Auctions, said.
An Emotional 10 Minutes
“It was incredible. People were cheering, I was crying. Our auctioneer Rod had a hard time getting through it because he was crying. He was emotional. It was unreal. I’ve never been a part of anything like that before in my life,” Payne added. In total, about $100,000 was raised for the family that day.
The Last Buyer
At the end of the auction, the last buyer donated the car back to the family. “He didn’t want to be recognized for it,” Payne said about Bob Bevins, the last buyer who gave the car back to the family. “He just went up to Ben personally after the auction and said, ‘You know what? I want your family to have that car so I’m giving it back to you.’ When our auctioneer Rod announced that, the place just went wild.”
An Easy Choice
“There was a standing ovation, people were cheering, whistling. It was wonderful,” Payne added. According to Bevins, it wasn’t a difficult decision. “It had way more sentimental value to that family than me owning another classic car, so I thought maybe someday, that young man will be able to drive his father’s car.”
Couple Gets Priceless Gift After Selling Car to Afford Raising Orphaned Grandchildren is an article from: LifeDaily