The Story of Tiffanie

This is Tiffanie. She met her brother for the first time when she was 15 in Missouri. After her brother graduated from high school, it was decided that Tiffanie was old enough to meet him.

The first thing that strikes you about Tiffanie is her smile. Her smile is something that never leaves her face. Not that many people have a constant smile. You can easily imagine her literally smiling as she’s sleeping.

This is a story about having someone so close to you be so far. This story is about meeting someone who should have been there your whole life be gone. This story is about the unbreakable bond siblings share.

Who is Tiffanie? Tiffanie is a 16 year old girl from Fairbury, Nebraska. When she was around eight or nine years old, she was told she had a brother named Cory. She remembers feeling excited when she learned she had another sibling. Her mother had him when she was only 19 years old and Tiffanie’s grandmother did not approve of her having children at such a young age, so they were separated. When Cory graduated from high school, Tiffanie and her mother drove down to Missouri so she could meet him. They pulled up into the driveway and they were kind of pushed into each other.

It is the not-so-distant future. Cory is leaving to go to Iraq. Tiffanie says she’s going to miss him a lot. Though she’s only known him for about a year, they have grown very close and talk all the time, even though they live miles apart.

Of course, what makes Tiffanie interesting is that she has a kindness that’s a higher level than most people. Upon arriving home one day, she heard a “Help me.” She put her things inside and followed the sound of the pleas. She found an elderly woman named Ruth who had fallen in the grass across the street from Tiffanie’s house. She ran over to help her, but couldn’t pick her up. Tiffanie went to the farmer’s market to get help. Tiffanie was rewarded with a hug. There aren’t many people who are willing to help a random stranger who they’ve never met and probably never will meet again.