On April 3, 2020, Wendy Sprintz lost her daughter, Jessica, to Sarcoma, an extremely rare form of cancer. Wendy had already gone through a divorce that caused her to lose friendships and left a job she loved to move from her home of 25 years to be close to her daughter. And then, she lost Jessica.
It was more devastating than anything Wendy had ever endured. Eventually, her grief led her to join a Seacoast GriefShare group. Despite only being able to meet with her new group via Zoom due to the pandemic, she felt the people in the group were her lifeline and support. She decided to get involved in Seacoast Sisterhood, and she continues to form solid friendships within the church.
Wendy, who had grown up Jewish, says “I never thought I would look forward to going to church as much as I do now.”
She attends Seacoast with her son-in-law and two grandsons, ages (8) and (9), and she has found comfort by stepping into their lives as a stay-at-home grandmother. She cherishes the opportunity to share memories with her grandsons and tell them stories about their mother.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. – Philippians 4:6
“I have a set of wind chimes on my porch,” she says, “and the boys are convinced when they ring in the breeze it’s Mom coming by to say hello.”
One of Wendy’s greatest concerns is that her health issues will keep her from being there for her grandsons. Wendy has had kidney problems for 40 years, and shortly after the loss of her daughter, she experienced a major bleed. With only one of her kidneys barely functioning, she faces dialysis and prays for a live donor kidney transplant so she can stay active enough to help care for her daughter’s children.
As Paul tells us, God has a way of providing. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6).
We pray for Wendy’s voice, like the wind chimes, to continue to have the chance to remind the boys for many years to come about their mother.
