14-year-old Tyce Pender of Cayce, South Carolina, has always known and loved Eric Jenkins, who began dating his mother, Marcy, in 2010.
It wasn’t long after the couple got married that they talked about Eric adopting Tyce and his brother, hiring a lawyer who planned to work pro bono.
However, additional legal bills would cost them thousands of dollars. Despite the challenge, the brothers and their stepsister wanted an official adoption.
Tyce said, “This is important because Eric teaches me respect, independence and what a man is supposed to be,” adding, “If anything ever happens to my mom, Eric is who I’d want to live with.”
So, to help defray the cost of the adoption, Tyce started a lawn care business. His mother bought him a lawnmower, and the young man went online to advertise for Tyce & Company Lawn Service.
The business’s social media page featured photos of the young man hard at work. So far, he has cared for approximately 16 yards. He has since earned $400.
Social media users were overcome with emotion when they heard the story, one person commenting, “I actually cried reading this. It’s too sweet.”
According to the Adoption Network’s website, almost 100 million citizens have someone adopted in their immediate family.
“6 in 10 Americans have had personal experience with adoption, meaning that they themselves, a family member, or a close friend was adopted, had adopted a child, or had placed a child for adoption.”