OCONOMOWOC — Along a busy stretch of road in Oconomowoc, you’ll find Sandy Marchese hidden amongst a colorful range of flowers.
For six weeks, she spends most of her time at Stamper’s Greenhouse, a locally-owned shop, located in Lorleberg Hardware’s parking lot.
“Out of all the flowers here, she’s the one that shines the brightest,” Marchese beamed.
But she’s not talking about an actual flower. She’s talking about eight-year-old Mary Schroeder, whose face she has on a jar for all her customers to see.
Schroeder, an Oconomowoc native, is currently battling Leukemia. Marchese is raising money to help.
“This lets them know no matter what you’re going through in life, you are never ever alone,” Marchese said.
Marchese, who runs the stand, has done this tradition for the past eight years. Each spring, she finds a child in the community who may be in need.
She donates the money raised to the family and also creates a hand-made animal or blanket for the child to keep.
“The first year, we raised $400 or $200. It wasn’t much but it planted the seed,” Marchese explained.
“Last year, little Hadley just lit up and she asked her parents if she could get out and give me a hug.”
Hadley McCormack was the child Marchese helped in the spring of 2023.
She passed away from a brain tumor last July.
“I went a whole year without work, even after Hadley went to heaven, to take time to grieve. I didn’t get paid so this helped out tremendously,” Erin McCormack, her mom, explained.
It’s not just about the financial assistance. She said this act of kindness has shown how many people they have supporting them as they grieve the loss of their daughter.
“I think it just gets harder,” Erin shared. “These are small things but they’re big things.”
Their five-year-old loved to sing, act, and play with animals. She said being back at the greenhouse for the first time since her daughter gained her wings was bittersweet.
“The community is always filling that jar and praying and asking how they are doing and that’s what Oconomowoc is really about,” Marchese said.
Her customers have come to know the act of kindness well. Marchese said people often ask who the child is, some even driving from Milwaukee to pitch in.
This year, at the end of her season, Marchese will deliver the jar and a special, pink bear to Mary and her family.
“I see the brightest little girl just shining and fighting. No matter what she’s going through, that face is telling me she’s not giving up. And we’re not going to let her,” Marchese smiled.
Mary’s mom, Jennifer, while at the hospital with her daughter, told TMJ4’s Kaylee Staral over the phone she’s grateful for people like Sandy.
The stand opened the last week of April and will operate until flowers run out, which Marchese said is usually around the first week of June.
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