Darrien Middleton is an emergency room nurse who loves her Nana Wilma more than anything, but she doesn’t have time to watch over her every day. That’s why it came as a huge relief to Darrien to learn that her Nana Wilma had such a great guardian angel right in her own neighborhood!

Nana Wilma was diagnosed with lung cancer two years ago, and she had to have a painful and long surgery to have part of her lung removed. Six months later, she was devastated when doctors informed her that she now had breast cancer.

“Two separate cancers less than a year apart; it has been an extremely long two years to say the least. Thankfully, she is still fighting today,” Darrien said.

Darrien has been trying to get her nana to move in with her for years so that she can help her with her needs, but she explained that her grandmother is stubborn and won’t leave the home she’s been living in for 38 years.

“She loves her home, her independence, her yard, and especially her neighbors. Every morning around 6 a.m., she wakes up, makes a cup of coffee, and goes directly to her porch,” Darrien said.

Though Darrien admits most people would describe Nana Wilma’s neighborhood as run-down, she added that the elderly woman’s neighbors have been so kind to her that they have renewed her faith in humanity.

“I work full time in the emergency department in our hometown on night shift,” Darrien recounted. “That alone keeps my schedule very limited, along with being a full-time student. We don’t have much family here, so getting Nana back and forth to treatment every day and being able to check on her frequently (or as much as I would like) has been difficult for me to do. This is where her beautiful neighbors come into play. They check on her multiple times throughout the day and have even helped me get her to chemotherapy and radiation appointments. They are honestly what keeps Nana going. I can’t go over to her home without someone at some point yelling ‘Hey Ms. Wilma, How ya doing?’ She knows everyone by name and they know and love her just as much as I do.”

Nana Wilma’s favorite neighbor is a 7 year-old boy named Caleb, who comes by to see her every day! Caleb lives with his father and grandmother, and he is an old soul who enjoys being around the elderly. He loves listening to Nana Wilma’s stories on her porch, or even just sitting with her in silence. After seeing Caleb with Nana Wilma, Darrien knew she had to share their story with the world.

“My Nana is so attached to him and the bond they have is incredible,” she said. “He doesn’t come from much, but you can tell he has been raised on love. He will bust out a dance move in a heartbeat, will go on and on about how much he loves school, and make you laugh until you cry. This kid deserves the love he has received from this post. He stands out from the norm and brings so much joy into everyone’s life he is around. I am so thankful for him and the love he has shown my grandmother. I know for certain it has helped her on her hardest days. He will never know how much I truly appreciate him. I hope one day he realizes the impact he has left on her life and mine as well.”

Though Nana Wilma is getting ready to undergo another 30 rounds of radiation, she is happy to know that she has the full love and support of her friends and neighbors to get her through it!

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