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'I have nothing to give my kids'
Mom, 7 kids struggle since dad died three years ago

December 6, 2006
BY ROSALIND ROSSI Staff Reporter
Christmas makes little 8-year-old Mario Norwood wish he were "big."
That's "big" as in big enough to go to work each day so he could afford to buy his mother the kind of gifts she only dreams of as the single mom of seven kids living in a two-room apartment in Englewood.

"I wish I was big so I could have a job and get my momma something for Christmas, like a necklace or some earrings or a diamond ring or a car and shoes for winter,'' said Mario, who wants to be a police officer when he grows up.

He'd buy mom two cars.

"If I made a whole bunch of money, I'd buy her two cars.''
Life has been tough since Mario's dad died three years ago, shortly after undergoing his second triple heart bypass. Afterward, said Mario's mom, Patricia Norton, 37, a former nurse's aide, someone ransacked the family's storage locker and took all their furniture.

So in their two-room apartment, the Nortons sit on the floor and sleep on mattresses. They eat meals cooked on a hotplate because Norton can't pay the gas bill. Her $564 a month Social Security disability check doesn't cover the $600 a month rent.

Last year, Norton scraped together enough money to get her kids one present each at a dollar store. This year, she's hoping the Chicago Sun-Times Letters to Santa will help fill the breach.


Children still dream
Norton's children are among 150 kids at Englewood's Kershaw School who wrote Letters to Santa in the 15th year of a program that lets Sun-Times readers fulfill the Christmas wishes of some of Chicago's neediest children.
At Kershaw, at 64th and Lowe, 97 percent of students come from low-income homes.

But the Norton family is particularly needy. "I have nothing to give my kids,'' Norton said. But that doesn't mean her kids -- especially the four at Kershaw -- can't dream.

Mario would love a video game player -- an XBox or a Playstation 2. A bicycle also would be great.

His sister, Rhonda, 7, is hoping for a baby doll and a bicycle. Brother Amari, 6, wants a Batman toy, a Power Rangers toy and a basketball rim. Amari's twin, Ahmed, would like a tricycle and a green Power Ranger toy.

However, the kids also realize they need the basics. None has boots or winter gloves. They all could use new winter coats. Each has only one short-sleeve white shirt for school, so Norton washes their sole uniform top each night in the sink.

In his letter to Santa, Mario said, he didn't have enough room to ask for boots, a coat, gloves and "stuff for school -- notebooks and pencils.'' And, "I forgot to ask for toys.'' But, Mario said, he did have room for this wish:

"If I had a stocking full of love, I would share it with my family.''

rrossi@suntimes.com



HOW YOU CAN HELPTo reach a child by answering a letter to Santa with a gift, in the $25 range:

Use the coupon on Page 40.

Go to www.suntimes.com and click on Season of Sharing.

Call (773) 890-7373 to request a letter or letters or e-mail us at cstelves@suntimes.com.

Send a check or money order made out to Chicago Sun-Times Charity Trust to: Chicago Sun-Times Season of Sharing, P.O. Box 3455, Chicago, IL 60654. Donations will be used by the Empty Stocking Fund to buy presents for children whose requests were not fulfilled, for warm clothing for those in need and to fund children's services. Gifts should arrive at their destinations by Dec. 20.

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