Interview by Paul Salfen
When her husband has a mental breakdown and goes missing, a determined woman and her young son set out to find him on the streets, sparking a movement to help unhoused people in need and inspiring a city.
This is a conversation with Cyndi Bunch, the wife of that man, and mother of Phillip.
As a result of his father’s mental illness, Phillip and his mom, Cyndi Bunch, were introduced to a world that broke their hearts. After searching the streets of Fort Worth looking for Phillip, SR. they were overwhelmed by how many homeless people they saw.
Later that evening as Phillip was being tucked into bed by his Mom, he expressed his concerns regarding his daddy. Was he safe? Was he happy? Would they ever see each other again? Then he asked a question that was the catalyst to the founding of Phillip’s Wish.
“Mommy,” he said. “Are you warm?”
“Yes, baby, I’m warm.”
“Is Daddy warm?” he asked.
And then the then 7-year-old son asked about everyone else – the people on the street, in the shelters, the people he had seen when they were driving around looking for his Dad. His mom told him the truth:
“No, not everyone is warm.”
They both knew what we they had to do. They would collect blankets. Hundreds of them. Maybe thousands. And give them to every homeless person they found. The first year 200 blankets were collected, by the fourth year, over 20,000 blankets were collected along with hundreds of hats, scarves, gloves, sleeping bags, toiletries and thousands of toys.
Thanks to the help and support of others, Phillip’s Wish – that no one would be cold or uncared for- can become a reality. Please consider being a part of Phillip’s Wish and experience firsthand the words of Winston Churchill, “You make a living by what you get, but you make a life by what you give.”
