The True Gift
The next morning, before their departure, Mr. Alvarez requested Sarah and Maya to meet him in the executive boardroom.
When Sarah entered, she found Mr. Alvarez sitting with a representative from the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital regional board.
"Mrs. Jenkins," Mr. Alvarez began, rising to shake her hand with genuine reverence. "Earlier this morning, Ms. Victoria Sterling surrendered the promotional platinum necklace back to the resort foundation."
Sarah frowned slightly. "She didn't want it?"
"She requested that it be auctioned immediately through our corporate philanthropic network," the hospital representative explained, handing Sarah a formal document. "The proceeds—amounting to seventy-five thousand dollars—have been matched dollar-for-dollar by the Sterling Family Trust. A permanent endowment fund has been established under Maya’s name to sponsor four annual seaside recovery retreats for pediatric oncology patients and their families."
Sarah’s knees felt weak. She reached for the back of a chair to steady herself. "An endowment?"
"In perpetuity," the representative smiled warmly. "Because, as Ms. Sterling wrote in the endowment charter, 'Every child deserves to see the turtles fly.'"
May you like
Maya looked up at the parchment, pointing at her name written in embossed gold lettering. "Mommy, does that mean other kids from the third floor get to come swim here too?"
Sarah pulled her daughter into her lap, burying her face in Maya’s neck, weeping tears of pure, unadulterated relief. "Yes, baby. All of them. They all get to come."
