'A Little Whisper from God': Real-Life Mom from '5,000 Blankets' Reveals How Son's Simple Question Sparked Incredible Quest to Help Homeless

Billy Hallowell : Dec 14, 2022
Faithwire.com

...Phillip emptied his piggy bank and had just around $7. He told Bunch he wanted her to buy 5,000 blankets—something clearly impossible with such a small amount of money...

[Faithwire.com] A new movie tells the harrowing and heartwarming story of a family who turned their pain into purpose, launching a powerful movement to help the homeless and disadvantaged. (Screengrab image: via '5000 Blankets')

"5,000 Blankets," which hit theaters nationwide [this week], tells the real-life story of the Bunch family's quest to collect thousands of blankets for the homeless.

The film specifically explores mom Cyndi Bunch's real-life plight after her husband had a mental breakdown and she and her young son, Phillip, went to find him.

As they took to the streets to search for him, they saw the homeless in desperate need—and that eye-opening experience sparked a movement of compassion. Cyndi Bunch, whose story inspired the film, told CBN's Faithwire how it all came to fruition.

"My husband was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and he quit taking his medicine," she said. "And so he started disappearing."

Bunch and Phillip, who was just 5 years old at the time, found themselves combing through the homeless district in Fort Worth, Texas. What they saw truly tugged at their hearts.

"I was just like, 'Whoa. Wow. I mean, thousands of people just laying on the streets," she said. "And Philip had never seen anything like that, ever."

Watch Bunch tell her story of turning heartache into purpose, Click Here.

Bunch, working two jobs and struggling at the time, remembered going home and feeding her young son dinner after searching to no avail. As she was tucking him in, her young son asked a series of questions that changed everything.

"He asked me, 'Mom, are you warm?' And I said, 'Yeah, baby, I'm warm,'" Bunch recalled. "And then he said, 'Well, do you think daddy's warm?'"

The question surprised her, but she told her son she truly hoped his dad was warm. But that wasn't the end of Phillip's inquiry.

"He goes, 'Well, mommy, what about all those other people on the street? Are they warm?'" she said. "And ... I told him the truth. I said, 'No, baby, they're not warm.'"

Looking at his mother, the little boy said, "Well, we need to get lots and lots of blankets so we can warm 'em all up."

And, with that, the seeds were planted for Phillip's Wish, the family's charitable organization. The next day, Phillip emptied his piggy bank and had just around $7. He told Bunch he wanted her to buy 5,000 blankets—something clearly impossible with such a small amount of money... Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

Continue reading and watch the interview and movie trailer here.