It was not uncommon for parents to send their children to other family members who had the means to keep them warm and keep food in their bellies. Jimmy Braddock and his wife Mae had difficulty keeping their family together during this time. When Jimmy's oldest son, Jay, steals a loaf of salami to feed the family, Jimmy makes him take it back. That's when Jimmy learns that Jay is afraid of being sent away. Jimmy simply promises him “…we will never send you away. Never." A little later in the film Mae sends the kids to her parents' house because they couldn't afford to keep the house heated. Jimmy got mad at Mae and said "...Don't make me break my promise to Jay ..." Jimmy then proceeds to the relief office to get the money but he is still missing about nineteen dollars. He then begged his old boxing bosses to give him some money so he could keep his children. Even though he had struggling to earn money, he did whatever it took to support his family