The Bridgeport community is rallying around a man whose wife suddenly died, leaving behind their nine children.

Jermaine Foster's wife, 23-year-old Alesia Leachman, died at St. Vincent's Medical Center on Wednesday. She had a seizure in the family's home on Nov. 30, and then suffered a heart attack and passed away seven days later.

Foster says he and Leachman have a total of nine kids in their "blended" family, and were raising six kids in their Trumbull Gardens home when she suddenly fell ill.

Foster says he cannot afford to pay for his wife's funeral, let alone buy Christmas presents for his family.

Friends say Foster is now faced with the responsibility of caring for the couple's children by himself. Foster's friends have set up a crowdfunding page on YouCaring to help him pay for the funeral.

Christmas presents for the couple's children can also be dropped off at 80 Bunnell St. in Bridgeport.