WOODSTOCK, Ga. — It's not merry and bright for many people this time of year, who have experienced loss, and are trying to grieve through all of the holiday cheer.
That’s why people in Woodstock are stepping up to help a teenager not feel so alone.
The community started a fundraiser and is offering her support after she lost both of her parents at a young age.
Serena Semere-Hamrick now holds her dog Athena extra close.
"It's nice to still have something familiar to love and hold," she said.
The 17-year-old has lost so much already.
"I don't like being told it will be okay, because what about right now? It hurts now," she said.
Serena is having a hard time finding joy this holiday season, it reminds her of losing her dad.
"It was really hard for me because we found him, on Christmas morning. I was doing chest compressions and I was doing mouth-to-mouth. The reality of it just made me grow up a lot faster than I should have," she said.
The tragedy, several years ago, brought Serena and her mom Cheryl closer.
They leaned on each other through the grief and became best friends.
"My mom and I were so close. I would never lie to her. I would just call my mom and say, 'I am sorry I snuck out, I regret it. Can you come get me?'" she said.
Serena's mom was always there for her daughter – so it was devastating when they got the news this fall Cheryl had a rare and aggressive cancer.
"It was just so unexpected. We were making plans for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and the day she coded, they were supposed to send her home," she said.
Within weeks of being diagnosed, Cheryl was in multi-organ failure and on life support. Serena knew she had to let her go.
"I just knew that it was right, and I didn't want to drag it on because it just hurt so much," she said.
Two months later, Serena says she's struggling.
"I wasn't ready to lose her. And losing both of my parents so young, I'm just not sure how to be an adult," she said.
"There's so many things we hadn't talked about, like health insurance, how to pick up prescriptions, health insurance. I wasn't ready for it," Serena said.
She says Georgia's Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) checked in on her when her mom died, but closed her case because she'll be 18 in 6 months.
"There's so many resources that I don't know about that they could have recommended. Like places to get food or clothes or hygiene products. Just therapy, making sure that I had a therapist or someone to talk to about what I had to manage. And just to leave me where I was at, I was already struggling with paying my rent, and all of this stuff, I feel left behind," she said.
People who live in Woodstock have rallied around Serena. They’re stepping in to try and fill that gap to support her.
She works full-time at Chick-fil-A and her employer is setting her up with a financial counselor.
Her teachers and classmates started a fundraiser to help her pay for necessities. A lot of people are also giving her their best advice on how to grow up.
"There are a lot of people who want to help me, but I am still missing the people who I want the most in my life," she said.
Serena does have a strong support system – a loving boyfriend, great friends and extended family.