HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - Standing for Houston is something we at KHOU 11 News do every single day.
We recently shared the story of 9-year old Betzabe Gomez. She asked Santa to fix her home. The roof and walls were damaged during Hurricane Harvey.
Her letter to St. Nick was shared thousands of times on Facebook, and we learned the community took a stand to help Betzabe.
“I don't know how they did it, but it's pretty,” Betzabe said of the quilt, made by hand, by the Coldspring, Texas, group Quilts for Kids.
Linder Deeter, a co-leader with the group, sent five quilts to KHOU 11 News -- one quilt for each of the five Gomez kids.
“These are the Princess Belle. If you don't know who she is, she's a princess and she has a movie, Beauty and the Beast,” Betzabe said as she described her brand-new fleece pajamas. “And I want to thank that person for giving me these awesome pajamas!”
Gifts donated from every corner of the Houston area filled every corner of the Gomez home in northeast Harris County.
Days after our initial report, the community organized a surprise birthday party. Betzabe turned 9 years old on Dec. 23, 2017.
“I want to say thank you,” the third grader said. “And I'm really thankful and really grateful that they were just helping me out.”
Kindness led to the hole in the family's roof getting patched up. Compassion helped patch up the holes in the family's living room and bedroom. More than $28,000 has been donated to help the family of 7 move forward.
As she described looking at the home repairs, Betzabe said, “and every time I just look at it, now I feel really happy. But I don't feel happy about my dad.”
Betzabe's father is sick. He requires dialysis, struggles with diabetes and Thursday, was rushed to a hospital. Family members said he hasn't eaten solid food in about two weeks and is in so much pain, he's having trouble sleeping.
After watching what her letter to Santa accomplished, Betzabe recited the letter she'd now like to write to her father's doctors.
“I really need you to help my dad, because he's feeling really sick, and I don't want him to feel sick," she said. "I just want him to feel happy.”