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Tom Cruise is said to be extending a helping hand to his wife’s recently widowed older sister. He wants to ensure that Katie Holmes’ sister Tammy has the support of her family, and has offered that she stay in his Beverly Hills Mansion with her two sons. From the way this story is worded, it’s unclear if Tammy is going to take him up on the offer or if she’s considering it. Her husband Jeff Freti died of a heart attack on April 12 at the age of 48. They were separated at the time and in the process of a divorce.

“Katie was so worried and upset for Tammy,” an insider told The Enquirer. “They are really close, and Katie wanted to help any way she could.

“The Tom came up with the idea of inviting Tammy and the boys to live with them. It meant Katie could keep a close watch on her sister and help her through this tough time.

“Tom really was a savior. He wants Katie to be happy, and he knew this would make it so much easier for her.”

The Holmes family was deeply touched that Katie and Tom, as well as Tom’s mom, were able to fly to Toledo for the April 20 funeral in spite of their hectic schedules, says another source.

When the burial concluded, Toma nd Katie stayed at the grave with Tammy and Jeff’s sons, 6-year-old Jack and 8-year-old Joe…

Added the insider: “The fact that Tom stepped forward and offered to open his home to Tammy and her boys was a great comfort to Katie, her sister and the entire Holmes family at this difficult time.”

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, May 11, 2009]

For all the things you can say about Tom Cruise, he does take care of his family and they seem important to him. He genuinely cares about people and that’s touching that he went to the funeral with Katie and that he wants to invite his sister in law to stay at his home. Tom’s mother and sister lived with him for years and he seems to like to have his family members close. That said, I bet Tammy isn’t going to be moving in with her sister and Cruise. She hopefully has strong support from friends and family in Ohio and won’t be leaving home. Her sons also have their friends and family nearby and she probably doesn’t want to uproot them.

It might be kind of awesome to stay in that gorgeous mansion for about a week, but Tom isn’t going to waste any time trying to convince Tammy and her sons to get involved with Scientology. It’s likely that everyone who works on the estate is a Scientologist and that’s got to be surreal to deal with. I’m picturing a scene from Tom’s film The Firm in which he’s suddenly struck by the reality that his plush home and sweet job all come at a very steep price.