"Lost & Found, it's like a family"
When Joe Struble died in August of 2023, he left behind his wife and two young sons. Losing a spouse after a prolonged illness is hard enough, but Joe’s wife, Orlymar, dealt with challenges most widows do not face. When Joe died, Orlymar found herself in a foreign country thousands of miles from her native Venezuela. The day after Joe died, Orlymar called Lost & Found Grief Center.
“It’s like a family,” Orlymar said. “Where I come from, we don’t have this type of help.”
Joe met Orlymar in 2008 while working at the oil refineries in Venezuela. Orlymar began dating the Billings native. They eventually married, moved to the Ozarks, and had two sons.
“Joe was a nice person. He was always willing to help people,” Orlymar said. “I loved that about him.”
An attentive father, Joe played basketball with his boys, took them four-wheeling, and loved being outside.
“We used to walk to McDonald’s with Dad and then walked to the park to play,” his older son recalled.
For a child who loses a parent, it is easy for them to feel like they are the only one without a mother or father, but through Lost & Found, they know they are not alone.
“Their classmates have dads, but my boys know that at Lost & Found, they have friends going through the same thing,” Orlymar said.
The Struble boys look forward to their group nights at Lost & Found. They made connections with other children and, through activities like mask-making, have learned to manage their emotions.
“I am really thankful for Lost & Found,” Orlymar said. “If it weren’t for Lost & Found, their daddy’s death would have been much harder on them. It has made a change in my boys.”
