MOUNT DORA, Fla. — The holidays are usually a time to spend with family but for one family, this will be their second year missing a loved one.

• Julio Martinez's pregnant wife went back to Puerto Rico for medical issues
• Two weeks after giving birth to her son, she died

The Mount Dora Police Department is trying to brighten up the holidays for a family who evacuated from Puerto Rico to Mount Dora after Hurricane Maria

Julio Martinez along with his pregnant wife and 7-year-old daughter came to Mount Dora with nothing, but his wife had a rash that doctors could not diagnosed.

She went back to Puerto Rico to seek medical attention and be with her family. Two weeks after giving birth, she passed away and Julio came back to the states with his son Angel and his daughter.

As Mount Dora Police Community Relations Officer Ivy Severance says, this hits close to home because she is from Puerto Rico and a single parent.

She along with the rest of the department got the family Christmas gifts to alleviate some of the stress and put a smile on the children's faces because this time of year is extremely difficult for them.

"I know how it is to come from another country, not know the language, of ways to get resources or how to get around that connection makes it easier for me to help other families," Severance says.

Martinez says when his baby son Angel is older, it will certainly be a difficult conversation to have with him about his mother.

"I got to tell him the truth. I can't really tell him much except what type of person his mother was and show him memories," Martinez says.

For a brief moment while opening gifts, the family is able to put the past behind them and think about the present​.