ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A family that just moved back to the St. Louis area needs the community's help.
Someone stole everything they own right out of their U-Haul, which was in Sappington overnight on Dec. 18 into the 19. The family had just moved back to St. Louis.
But it’s been an uphill battle for mother Vicki Williams even before this happened. Williams is a single mom with seven children, three of whom she's still raising at home.
“I’ve been in the Midwest all my life between Illinois and Missouri, living and working back and forth, but I grew up here," Williams said.
Vicki Williams decided it was time to take a leap of faith last April. She and her family packed up and moved to Florida.
“I love being outside, I’m an outdoor person," she said.
Williams said a fresh start was long overdue.
“My husband passed away years ago and after rebuilding myself I was like, 'OK, I can do this,'" she said.
But the Florida sunshine wasn't all it seemed. During the eight months she lived there, Williams lost her transportation, her job and was evicted.
“I packed up my U-Haul and packed up my babies, planning on coming back home," she said.
Eager to return home, Williams' plans once again came to a halt.
“Our U-Haul was burglarized, and a lot of my kids’ clothes and personal effects," she said.
Williams said the U-Haul was filled with all they had left.
“It’s been kind of an emotional roller coaster ride, being a single mom and everything.”
Through all the obstacles, Williams feels sadness in her situation.-
“The fact of feeling like something was being taken from me again when I’m such a giver," she said.
But, somehow, she also feels gratitude for this newfound perspective
“We don’t realize what we have until we do something different," she said.
For now she and her children are staying with friends and family. But if you want to help out you can donate to the family through a GoFundMe so they can start over, again.