One Monroe family's little angel

MONROE-As the holiday season comes to an end, and the gifts are unwrapped and the exchange of presents is over, there is one little Monroe girl who will not stop giving. Jaclyn Williams is 10 years-old and was featured in a December issue of The Photo News. Jaclyn is trying to raise enough money to purchase a special van which will allow friend, Allison Murphy and her mother, Laurie, to travel more easily. Allison is seven and has cerebral palsy. She is epileptic and legally blind and is bound to a wheelchair. This is why it is often difficult for her mother to get Allison from one place to another by car. In response to the story which ran Dec. 10 in The Photo News, readers have donated more than $1,000 for Allison. "The checks just kept coming in response to the story," said Jaclyn Williams' mother, Alba. "The first check was for $300 and then checks from all amounts, down to $5 came, it was just unbelievable." The Williams' also were told that the people who run UNO'S Pizzeria & Restaurant in Central Valley offered to hold a fundraiser for young Allison after reading the story. A gesture of help also came from a Monroe car dealership, whose owner said he will help the cause after reading about Jaclyn's quest to help her handicap friend. The Williams' have been away for several weeks, for Alba's husband, who had a business trip on the West Coast. The family will also be locating to the West Coast in the near future and Jaclyn wants to help Allison as much as she can before they move. Alba also said that in response to the story, Jaclyn received comments, "as if she was famous." "People would come up to her and say, ‘There goes the star,' and ‘We're going to miss you when you move,'" Alba Williams said. But Alba returned to the main reason why all of this is happening because her daughter is helping a girl who really needs help. "The generosity is unbelievable," she said. "The people who live here just impress me." Allison Murphy's mother, Laurie, said, "Jackie never ceases to amaze me. I thank my lucky stars for her." "I feel grateful for everything," she added. "It's hard to put into words how I feel, it's a very private matter but at the same time it's a very public matter. "It feels very special when Allison is spoken about, and how Jaclyn pulled the community together and allowed everyone to make a huge difference in my daughter's life," Murphy said. An example of the community's reaction can be found in a letter from a Monroe woman who made a donation and sent a letter to the newspaper. Here is an excerpt: "I read your story, was touched, and made a donation through my bank with the account number that was mentioned in your article. My bank officers were pleased to see the story which I brought with me because they know (the Williams) family. I hope the family has a prosperous New Year." After Alba and Jaclyn get home from their personal business on the West Coast, Jaclyn will be hard at work again. At that time, more is to be planned, the raised money is to be put toward Allison's needs, and Jaclyn, the fifth-grader of Pine Tree Elementary, will explore more options, including the two offers from the car dealership and the restaurant. "My daughter lights up a room, people stop me and tell me they have her picture from the article on their refrigerator," said Laurie Murphy said. "Jackie is able to move mountains for my daughter."