Mother, Daughter, 2 Strangers Share Blessing Before Thanksgiving
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ROCKWALL (CBS11) - Tammy DeWees and her 14-year-old daughter Bre Anna may have been window shopping in the Rockwall Town Square, but their ultimate goal wasn't to spend money.
"This was just to have mother-daughter time together," said Tammy.
There's a reason she said their time together is so precious.
"I've been dealing with stage-four breast cancer," said Tammy. "The chemo made me so tired and sick and then I did 33 radiations and then two weeks after they put my port in, I had a heart attack."
So when they went into the store Bella's House, they met the manager, Debbie Deitelbaum and another employee, Harriett Lane.
"I noticed her shirt. It said 'fight cancer.' We just started talking about her story," said Deitelbaum.
"I kind of fell in love with her daughter," said Lane. "She was very open and a very honest young lady."
She suggested the Dewees go shopping at Groovy's another store down the street.
When they arrived, the manager there told them someone just called and wanted to pay for an outfit for Bre Anna, which came as quite a surprise.
"I was like 'wait, what?' This actually can't be happening. It means a lot because I don't have many outfits that go together very well," said Bre Anna.
"My daughter's heart just dropped," said Tammy. "It was just unbelievable. I didn't know what to think."
"It made me look at my life. The things we complain about. We haven't gone through what she's gone through. She was kind of an inspiration," said Deitelbaum.
Lane agreed. "We discussed that, how fortunate we are and how grateful we should be."
So when Bre Anna and her mom went back to Bella's House to express their appreciation, it was Harriett Lane and Debbie Deitelbaum who thanked them.
"Because she gave us such a blessing," said Lane.
The two women told the Dewees to come back before Christmas.
"Be thankful for all that you have," said Deitelbaum. "Don't take anything for granted. Tell the ones you love that you love them everyday."
Tammy Dewees, a single mother, said after more than 18 months after treatment began, she just found out she is now in remission, just one of their blessings this Thanksgiving.
"I have my daughter, she means the world to me," said Tammy. "She's all I have."
"Be thankful for what you have because you might not have it for long," said Bre Anna.
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