School district maintenance workers come to rescue of needy family

Even before they realized a van full of Christmas presents was only a few feet away, the Johns children jumped at the chance to entertain a group of school district maintenance workers.

Smiling, the four Shanklin Elementary School students bounded out of the mobile home near Laurel Bay Road in Burton on Monday to sing Christmas carols, read letters to Santa Claus and show off newspaper clippings proving they made the honor roll.

And when they learned the real reason 10 Beaufort County School District employees had paid their family a visit, the kids were ecstatic.

"This is so exciting!" second-grader LaNiece shrieked when the van door opened and she saw dozens of wrapped boxes.

"Oh, Lordy," echoed her twin sister, LaNay, as she struggled with the weight of four gifts loaded into her arms.

The school maintenance department collected about $500 for the Johns family this year "to make Christmas a little bit brighter," said Terry Warner, director of facilities maintenance.

They delivered toys, clothing, canned food and a 19-pound turkey Monday morning, though the presents won't be opened until Christmas by order of grandmother Lora Hannah.

If not for those gifts, Hannah said her grandchildren wouldn't have received anything this year.

Hannah, who now has temporary custody of two sets of twins, ages 9 and 7, said she receives food stamps and $326 a month in government support. It's her only source of income.

She and her four grandchildren moved into the three-bedroom mobile home with her youngest daughter's family in August. Hannah's daughter, Jameen, lives with her husband, 15-year-old daughter and two sons, ages 10 and 2.

That puts 10 people in the mobile home, and Hannah's daughter is pregnant with twin boys due in five weeks.

The maintenance department bought sleeping bags and blankets for the family when they found out a few of the children sleep on the floor because Hannah and four children share one room with a single, full-sized bed.

Finding a home for Hannah and her grandchildren has been a struggle.

Nine-year-old twins Naema and Naem, a girl and a boy, were born in Philadelphia when their mother was 17. Less than two years later, twins LaNay and LaNiece were born.

The children lived in different places throughout the city, often staying with their mother's friends for extended periods of time until Hannah brought them to Beaufort about five years ago.

"I made up my mind; they need a new life," she said. "My grandchildren need a home."

Hannah attended a support group for people raising grandchildren through the Beaufort County School District. A parent educator employed by the district is helping her legally adopt the twins, which is how the maintenance department learned of the family.

Once the adoption is approved, Hannah hopes she will qualify for subsidized, low-income housing, which is what topped her Christmas list this year.

"I just don't want to be out on the street no more," Hannah said. "There's nothing like a home."