MARGIE ROGERS
Health woes beset grandmother caring for 4 kids
By ANNE RODGERS
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Margie Rogers raised seven children, but when the time came that two of her grandchildren, Aaliyah and Jaylon, needed a stable home, she opened wide the doors of her home yet again. In addition, she became a foster parent to Shania, 10, and Dekevious, 11, when they were tiny, and legally adopted the children.
She cooked and cleaned and worked as a home health caregiver, living in the Stuart home she purchased in 1985, the year her husband died.
But things have changed dramatically for Margie, 73, and her family. In the past two years, she has had both a stroke and a heart attack. More recently, a second stroke left her with pain and weakness in her right leg and hand. Though she regained her speech fairly quickly, the physical exercises Margie does to regain mobility haven’t restored her strength.
So, the bills stack up and the house continues to deteriorate. The oven door hangs askew on its hinges, leaking heat when in use; duct tape holds the toilet seat together and the tank runs constantly; tile flooring is patchy and the kitchen cabinets need replacing.
Basics like school clothes for the kids and bed linens are also needed, and Medicaid doesn’t cover all of Margie’s medical expenses.
This grandmother would like to sign her kids up for after-school activities — Dekevious likes basketball; Shania would love to try out as a cheerleader; and Aaliyah, 12, is good at both football and track — but with only $1,000 a month of income, none can be spared for extracurricular sports.
Margie’s daughter, Wylene, comes from Hobe Sound most days to help her mom out, and Big Brothers Big Sisters provides mentors to three of the four Rogers kids.
“They take them out for lunch, like that,” Wylene said of the mentors, for whom she and her mom are grateful.
Margie hopes the kids soak up lessons on how to behave from their association with Big Brothers Big Sisters. She worries about negative influences on the kids, now that she can’t watch them as closely — and she worries, too, about what might happen if she weren’t around.
For now, she concentrates on small tasks: She can sort and fold the laundry, even if she’s not yet able to put it into the washer or dryer. She hopes to return to the kitchen soon, too. (“She used to roll that dough!” laughs Wylene.)
As a girl in South Carolina, Margie recalled Christmas gifts of “a doll baby and little dishes with fruit.” With help from Season to Share, she hopes to offer more to her own kids.
MARGIE ROGERS’ WISH
Margie Rogers, who cares for two grandchildren and two foster children whom she adopted, needs money for overdue medical and household bills, home repairs (including a new stove and kitchen cabinets) and a remodel of one bathroom. The family needs sheets, towels and school clothes for the kids, who are 10, 11, 12 and 14.
