YEAR OLD SON, JOSIAH. ARE YOU READY TO SEE OUR NEW HOME? YES. SOME PEOPLE DREAM OF BEING RICH AND HAVING A MANSION. AND, YOU KNOW, LAVISH. I JUST WANT NORMAL. AND THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT CASEY HAS NOW. DESPITE THE MANY HARDSHIPS SHE’S FACED. MY. MOTHER LEFT WHEN I WAS THREE. I HAVE A BROTHER AND A SISTER. SHE WAS, AND UNFORTUNATELY, STILL IS, AN ADDICT. I HAVE NOT SEEN HER IN A FEW YEARS. I WAS RAISED BY MY FATHER. THEN CASEY LIVED WITH HER UNCLE UNTIL SHE TURNED 13 AND ENTERED FOSTER CARE. I WAS RELEASED. SHORTLY BEFORE I TURNED 18. I WAS RELEASED BACK TO MY DAD. SHE THEN LIVED WITH HER DAD FOR A SHORT TIME BEFORE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS. THEN EVENTUALLY SHE MET HER SON’S FATHER. WE WERE ON AND OFF FOR A WHILE. WHEN THEY WERE NOT TOGETHER, SHE LIVED AT THE CLAIRE HOUSE. A LANCASTER COUNTY ORGANIZATION DESIGNED TO HELP SINGLE MOTHERS, BUT SHE MOVED OUT AFTER HER SON’S FATHER SAID HE WANTED TO BECOME A FAMILY AGAIN. SHE MOVED OUT AND IN WITH HIM. BUT ONE DAY HE DIDN’T COME HOME. SO IN THE SUMMER OF 2023, CASEY WENT BACK TO THE CLAIRE HOUSE. IT TOOK A WHILE, BUT GOT ON MY FEET AND THAT SHE DID. CASEY COMPLETED THE PROGRAM, WORKING HARD EVERY STEP OF THE WAY SO SHE COULD SURPRISE HER SON WITH THIS. I TOOK THE VIDEO TO SEND IT TO STAFF. I WANTED TO SHOW STAFF. HIS REACTION? CASEY TOOK THE VIDEO LAST OCTOBER TO SHOW THE STAFF AT THE CLAIRE HOUSE. THEN ROUGHLY A MONTH AND A HALF AGO, SHE HAD TO GET A NEW PHONE. SO SHE POSTED THE VIDEO ON TIKTOK TO MAKE SURE SHE COULD STILL VIEW IT. I POSTED IT, AND THEN I WENT TO SLEEP, AND WHEN I WOKE UP, IT IT WAS JUST COMPLETELY VIRAL. YOU KNOW, I WOKE UP, IT HAD OVER 100,000 VIEWS AND BY THE END OF THE DAY, LIKE 500,000. AND THEN IT WENT UP TO A MILLION AND IT JUST KEPT GOING. NOW THE VIDEO HAS OVER 5.5 MILLION VIEWS, AND THE TIKTOK COMMUNITY FILLED JOSIAH’S TOY BIN. HE MUST HAVE LIKE 50 PACKAGES, A NEW HOME FOR THE PAIR, BUT SHE ALREADY HAS HER EYES SET ON HER NEXT GOAL. A HOUSE THAT SHE WILL BUY. I WANT THAT SO BADLY. SOMETHING THAT I CAN PASS DOWN TO HIM AND HE’LL HAVE THAT. HE WON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT RENT OR BEING ABLE TO AFFORD, YO
Casey Atwood, a mother from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, has gone viral on TikTok after sharing her journey from living in a shelter for 14 months to starting anew with her 4-year-old son, Josiah."Some people dream of being rich and having a mansion and, you know, lavish. I just want normal," Atwood said, expressing her desire for stability despite facing numerous hardships.Atwood's challenges began early in life."My mother left when I was 3. I have a brother and a sister. And she was, and unfortunately, still is an addict. I have not seen her in a few years. I was raised by my father," she said.She lived with her uncle until age 13 before entering foster care, and was released shortly before turning 18."I was released, shortly before I turned 18. I was released back to my dad," Atwood said. After a brief period living with her father, she experienced homelessness and eventually met her son's father."We were on and off for a while," Atwood said of her relationship with Josiah's father.During their separation, she lived at Clare House, a Lancaster County organization supporting single mothers. She moved out to live with Josiah's father when he expressed a desire to reunite as a family, but he didn't come home, prompting her return to Clare House in the summer of 2023."It took a while, but I got on my feet," Atwood said, describing her determination to complete the program at Clare House before she surprised her son with a new home.Atwood recorded a video of Josiah's reaction to their new home last October, initially sharing it with Clare House staff."I took the video, just sent to staff. I wanted to show staff his reaction," she said.After getting a new phone, she posted the video on TikTok to preserve the memory."I posted it, and then I went to sleep. And when I woke up, it was just completely viral. You know, I woke up, it had over 100,000 views. And by the end of the day, like 500,000. And then it went up to a million, and it just kept going," Atwood said.The TikTok community then responded by sending Josiah around 50 packages of toys.With a new home secured, Atwood is now focused on her next goal: buying a house."I want that so badly," she said. "Something that I can pass down to him, and he'll have that. He won't have to worry about rent or being able to afford, you know, where, you know, where he's going to live and whatnot."
LANCASTER, Pa. — Casey Atwood, a mother from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, has gone viral on TikTok after sharing her journey from living in a shelter for 14 months to starting anew with her 4-year-old son, Josiah.
"Some people dream of being rich and having a mansion and, you know, lavish. I just want normal," Atwood said, expressing her desire for stability despite facing numerous hardships.
Atwood's challenges began early in life.
"My mother left when I was 3. I have a brother and a sister. And she was, and unfortunately, still is an addict. I have not seen her in a few years. I was raised by my father," she said.
She lived with her uncle until age 13 before entering foster care, and was released shortly before turning 18.
"I was released, shortly before I turned 18. I was released back to my dad," Atwood said.
After a brief period living with her father, she experienced homelessness and eventually met her son's father.
"We were on and off for a while," Atwood said of her relationship with Josiah's father.
During their separation, she lived at Clare House, a Lancaster County organization supporting single mothers. She moved out to live with Josiah's father when he expressed a desire to reunite as a family, but he didn't come home, prompting her return to Clare House in the summer of 2023.
"It took a while, but I got on my feet," Atwood said, describing her determination to complete the program at Clare House before she surprised her son with a new home.
Atwood recorded a video of Josiah's reaction to their new home last October, initially sharing it with Clare House staff.
"I took the video, just sent to staff. I wanted to show staff his reaction," she said.
After getting a new phone, she posted the video on TikTok to preserve the memory.
"I posted it, and then I went to sleep. And when I woke up, it was just completely viral. You know, I woke up, it had over 100,000 views. And by the end of the day, like 500,000. And then it went up to a million, and it just kept going," Atwood said.
The TikTok community then responded by sending Josiah around 50 packages of toys.
With a new home secured, Atwood is now focused on her next goal: buying a house.
"I want that so badly," she said. "Something that I can pass down to him, and he'll have that. He won't have to worry about rent or being able to afford, you know, where, you know, where he's going to live and whatnot."
