When Katelynn Martinez was growing up, the days could be incredibly lonely. But that all changed when the neighbors decided to call her their granddaughter.

Kids want a lot of things. But what they want more than anything else is a loving family around them.

Katelynn Martinez had a loving mother. Her dad also loved her. But as he was a truck driver, he would spend most of the year on the road.

Katelynn had no siblings. So she would always be looking for other kids to play with. That was when she noticed that the old couple next door was incredibly friendly.

The couple, Arlene and Bill would love to talk to her through the fence. In fact, the first interaction that Katelynn can remember with them was Arlene handing her strawberries in the yard.

As the months went by, Katelynn, Arlene and Bill became closer.

Katelynn would go round their home almost every day. Then one morning, she knocked on their door, sat in their living room and asked them an important question. “Will you guys be my grandparents?”

Arlene and Bill were amazed by the question. In fact, both started crying upon hearing it. Neither of them had had children, so they thought that they would never have the chance to have a grandchild.

Then Bill came up with an idea. Of course, officially naming Katelynn their granddaughter was impossible. Instead, he found an adoption certificate online and printed it out. The three signed it, and the couple placed it on their living room wall.

And it stayed on the wall for more than a decade. Throughout this time, Katelynn remained close with her grandparents. They loved hearing what she got up to in school, how she was taking up more hobbies and eventually what she was considering doing once school was over.

Arlene would help Katelynn follow any passion she had, like painting or sewing.

Bill took it upon himself to give Katelynn driving lessons.

When Katelynn announced to Bill and Arlene that she wasn’t sure if she should attend college because of the price, they encouraged her to apply. So Katelynn looked into it, and when she got accepted, the couple revealed that they had saved up all the funds she would need. They’d been saving up for her ever since they had signed the adoption certificate.

Before Katelynn left for college, she wanted to find out the things she’d never known about Bill and Arlene. They’d never revealed why they hadn’t had kids of their own. That was when they told the truth at last.

Both of them came from difficult backgrounds. Their own families were poor. And Arlene had developed a drinking problem. This problem got in the way of their family aspirations. By the time that Arlene had cleaned up, it was too late to start a family.

Katelynn left for college, with her grandparents helping her all along the way, and not just financially.

Then, in 2013, Bill contacted Katelynn with some terrible news. Arlene had passed away. It was just two days short of the anniversary of their adoption.

During the funeral, Bill announced to the room that the greatest joy of her life was raising her granddaughter, Katie.

For years, Katelynn had no idea that Bill and Arlene were getting as much out of their adoption as she was. Together, they filled massive voids in their lives. Katelynn will never forget her non-blood relative grandparents.

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Source: Humansofny, Inspiremore