Sam Restifo barely knew the woman.
Even so, when she left her two children, ages 12 and 14, at his home in Saginaw, Michigan, he did not turn them away. That was in February 2025. Since then, he had been living without running water and with the power shut off, relying on a generator, while trying to enroll the boys in school without being their legal guardian. They went nearly a year without being able to attend classes.
Everything changed when ABC12 told his story. Child Protective Services knocked on his door, and Restifo feared they would be separated into different foster homes. But instead, strangers showed up. A GoFundMe campaign raised more than 18,500 dollars, his gutter business began receiving new customers, and now he has a hearing to become the children’s legal guardian.
“We’ve never fought or anything; we get along very well”, Restifo said. “I think they’ve helped me just as much as I’ve helped them.”
