LA PORTE, Texas — Members of the La Porte community touched by the story of three children who drowned off Sylvan Beach this week, are paying tribute to the children in a variety of ways.
A memorial near the water at Sylvan Beach Park continued to grow Saturday as children and adults stopped by to pay homage with stuff animals and flowers.
The family is shattered by the loss of the children: Two boys, 7 and 10; and a 13-year-old girl.
A few miles from Sylvan Beach on West Main Street in La Porte, an antiques store owner is donating his profits from the weekend to the family.
“I saw it on the news,” Mike’s Antiques owner Mike Henley said. “Here at the antique shop I keep four grandkids and one nephew. I just could not imagine coming to work without three of my kids. I couldn’t imagine waking up without three of my kids in my life.”
Henley says people have heard about the contribution he has pledged to the family and have stopped by his antique store to drop off donations and gift cards. He says some people have even called him and given their credit card numbers to him over the phone to contribute.
Henley says he has only texted briefly with the mother of two of the victims. He has never met her.
“Right now, she’s probably – how do you convince someone life is really worth going on?” Henley said. “This could really push someone over the edge. I felt like it was so important they felt love from the community.”
Henley says the tragedy is a reminder that one’s life can be forever changed in a matter of seconds.
“You look out there and there they all are,” Henley said. “You look again, and they’re not. It can be that quick. And we don’t think about that.”
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