Meadows Family Charity Auction

Event raises $20,000 for local family | newarkadvocate.com | The Newark Advocate

Talk about a heart-warming day in Newark, Ohio. The entire community came together today and raised $20,000 at a 100% volunteer donation auction for a 27 year old widowed mother of 3 girls. Jennifer and I took the girls and spent most of the day there bidding on stuff. We had a really good time, and there were so many people there that we knew. This auction helped shed some light on a very dark day that took place last month. Lucy Meadows husband was violently murdered in front of his family in his home by his best friend, over a stupid bottle of Oxycontin. Here's what I know (which isn't much).

Back on August 8th, James, Phil, and I were in Tennessee at CodeStock. I got a call from Jennifer around 8am that next morning and she was on the edge of hysterical. She told me about this horrific murder that took place about 6 miles from our house (that's considered "close" out here in the boondocks), and we knew all of the members involved. The victims were James and Lucy Meadows and their 3 little girls (Mackenzie, Madisen, and Morgan). Apparently the night before, they were letting their close friend, Jason, stay the night. James had recently undergone surgery, and therefore had a prescription for Oxycontin and a bottle in his house. Unfortunately, Jason had a very strong addiction to Oxycontin and he killed his best friend to get access to these pills.

Jason wanted some of James' Oxycontnin, but James refused. James wouldn't give Jason any, so Jason stabbed James and then went for Lucy so that she could get it. Lucy struggled and fought off Jason; she suffered strangulation bruises and many cuts on her face, arms, and fingers... She struggled with Jason in front of her 3 little girls. Luckily, Lucy did fight him off and she is now raising her 3 girls. For more details, I'm sure there's a lot of information on the internet. I know a lot more than I'm writing, but see no need to share all the details here... they really suck.

I can't imagine how scary that night must have been for Lucy and (especially) those 3 little girls; they literally watched the whole thing unfold in front of them. I think about them a lot. Attending James Meadows' funeral last month was one of the hardest things I've ever done. Lucy was there with all of her bandages and stitches and she was "a rock" (as Jennifer says)... she smiled and let people shower her in love. She was a hero that night and will always be a hero to those girls. The funeral was full of mixed emotions, there was a lot of sadness, a lot of love, a lot of hate, and a lot of confusion. I was experiencing all of them and it's had a very large impact on me. The worst part for me was letting Morgan (the 5 year old, and Lizzie's friend) take us up to her Daddy's casket. She put her little hand on his head while she talked to us about him. I cried like a baby while she talked. Jennifer and I talk about the Meadows' girls a lot.

Tonight was absolutely amazing. More people showed up than anybody ever expected, and more money was raised than was ever expected. Our girls played with James and Lucy's girls the entire night just running around the gymnasium. They were just being kids, and that was comforting to watch. All the volunteers had shirts that had "In Memory of James Meadows" and "We Will Never Forget..." Everything was paid with through donations. All of the money went directly to Lucy. How wonderful is that? However, no amount of money will bring James (aka: Daddy) back.

The thing that I remember most about James Meadows was that he always had a smile on his face. It is amazing how such a good person can go so violently and sudden. His death has really had an impact on me. I don't take my time with my girls for granted one bit. We miss you James.