Marcy was a single mother of two back in 2010, when she met 24-year-old Eric Jenkins, a machinist, who immediately knew that he would get along really well with the kids.
Especially the younger one, Tyce, who was only two years old back then, growing up knew that Eric was the best father figure he could have asked for.
“He’s been a father figure to me since I was 2,” Tyce told TODAY Parents. “He’s always been there for us and helps me with anything I need like homework.”
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And, while the man proposed to his girlfriend four years later, he has not been able to adopt the two boys yet. And the reason is no other than the legal costs that are too much money for the family.
Two years after the couple got married, they tried to figure out how the adoption could be completed, and they were lucky to find a lawyer to hire who will work for them pro bono.
But, despite this lucky event, the legal costs are still too many which translates to several thousands of dollars.
But Tyce, who loves Eric and really wants to be his child officially, decided to take action and start his own business in order to help his family cover the court expenses.
“This is important because Eric teaches me respect, independence and what a man is supposed to be,” Tyce explained. “If anything ever happens to my mom, Eric is who I’d want to live with.”
Although he had only mowed the lawn once in his life, he had watched others do it sometimes. Also, he remembered that his brother had mowed lawns as a kid to save money for the summer, and that’s how he got the idea.
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He would start a lawnmowing business in order to raise money to help his stepfather to adopt him.
“Court is expensive,” said Tyce. “I thought I could make enough money to pay for the adoption.”
Thanks to a page he created on Facebook, he found his first customer, a woman named Sarah Larrabee in West Columbia.
Marcy drove Tyce to the woman’s house and she waited outside until he was done with lawnmowing.
The customer was actually happy with the teen’s job and that’s how his business basically started.
“It went so well, he was such a sweet kid, so polite and like, just so happy to be there and excited to have his first job, and it was just so sweet,” Larrabee told local news station WLTX.
Both Marcy and Eric were touched by the boy’s deed, and they are supporting him although they made it clear that they will be covering the majority of the adoption costs.
“It’s a powerful thing that Tyce wants to give this recognition (to his stepfather),” Marcy said, and Eric added: “I’m extremely proud of Tyce. He’s a good kid.”
We hope Tyce’s business will keep growing and that he’ll soon be officially adopted by Eric.
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