A young mother in Longmont, Colorado, is facing one of the most painful chapters a person can endure after the sudden passing of her husband, Charley Vlietstra. Emily Vlietstra is now left to raise three young daughters, Margo, Etta, and baby Ruby, on her own, and her community is refusing to let her do it without a safety net beneath her.
Within hours of a GoFundMe campaign going live, nearly $12,000 had already poured in from friends, family members, and strangers moved by the family’s story.
The fundraiser, organized by Lisa Waldo, a close friend and doula partner of Emily’s, carries the simple but powerful title “Community Care for Emily and Her Girls.” The goal is set at $50,000, and judging by the early response, the community surrounding this family is not short on generosity.
Charley was remembered by everyone who shared the campaign as the kind of man who held his family together in every sense of the word.
He was their husband, their father, their protector, and their provider. Those who knew him spoke about the way he led his household with gentleness, patience, and a quiet kind of joy that left a mark on everyone around him. Losing him suddenly has turned Emily’s world completely upside down.
A Mother’s Prayer and a Community’s Response
What stands out about this fundraiser is what Emily herself asked for. She did not ask only for money. She asked specifically for prayers that God would bring out in her the same qualities Charley carried as a parent. Kindness. Gentleness. Patience. Joy. She wants to lead her daughters the way Charley led their family, and she is leaning on her faith to find the strength to do that now that he is gone.
That kind of honesty resonated deeply with the people who shared her story online. Friends flooded social media within hours, writing about Emily with admiration and love.
One friend addressed Margo, Etta, and baby Ruby directly in her post, telling the three girls plainly that their mother is extraordinary. Another described Emily as someone navigating a nightmare and praised the way the internet can create real, tangible support during the hardest moments of a person’s life.
Donations ranging from $100 to $1,000 came in rapidly, with 48 donors contributing in the first few hours alone.
If you want to support Emily Vlietstra and her daughters, the GoFundMe campaign is live now at gofundme.com.
Search “Community Care for Emily and Her Girls” to find it. Every dollar goes directly toward helping this family find stability and move forward through their grief.
