Donna's Very Last Stand to Survive

Hi Friends:

My name is Donna. I am a college educated professional, hardworking, resourceful and proud. I have been in this community most of my life, a So Cal girl born and bread. I'm also single and a University of California graduate. My family came to Riverside from Carson when my father purchased land here to get back to his farming roots. Later daddy and mama built the house which he said would be his last home. Unfortunately, it was. He walked his last steps here.

After both my parents died the home passed down to me and I have been living here full time for 17 years. I fell on hard times when my science career that I worked for my whole life was sabotaged by others.

I did EVERYTHING I was supposed to in life. I studied hard. I distinguished myself in my career. I worked hard. I paid off my 10 year student loans in three years. I loved my God, my family (gone now) and my friends. I wanted a life with everything in me. I was determined. I did no thing wrong. There were NO missteps. There were NO personal failures on my part. And after everything I and my parents worked very hard for I find myself at my wits end.

This is very difficult for me. I am not a person who asks for help but at this time I must if I am to survive. For the last few years the only thing that has separated me from certain demise is this home. I could not have made it this far without it. And I can recover with it BUT NOT WITHOUT IT. I have motored through to this point somehow on sheer determination but my time is up. I always thought things would get better and I would be able to recover somehow. I prayed in earnest for two and a half years. In 2015 I had to sell my car to maintain utilities.

But in March 2018 I will lose my home to PROPERTY TAX SALE with no hope of saving it on my own.

                     I am raising $1996 for taxes and gofundme fees.

Because of the career sabotage, the usual financial avenues are all blocked.

I will fall into permanent homelessness.

I have had nightmares about my belongings being thrown in the trash and being turned out into the streets with nowhere to go. No matter how uncomfortable I am with reaching out, I can't let that happen. Until now no one knows about my struggle. I have struggled in silence with no support of any kind. That has been hard. Like most people I would have thought it was impossible for this situation to happen to me. But it can happen to anyone in the perfect storm of negative circumstances. For those who want to know, yes I have taken menial survival jobs but those are rarely stable. For the past several holiday seasons, out of necessity, I have done seasonal work for the Salvation Army and survived primarily on that and a few other temporary supplemental jobs. There are those who have tried to shame me for this work but I refuse to be shamed. I am still here. My home is the only place I belong on earth. It is mine. Please help. I have never harmed a living soul in all my life. I have served God my whole life. I ask God repeatedly why this happened to my life.

My beautiful parents were southerners who migrated to California to escape the Jim Crow south. My father was a WWII Army vet, and a civil servant for 30 years. My mother fostered children and disabled adults for 18 years. Both rest in Riverside National Cemetery along with five other closest family members. I visit mama and daddy on family holidays and have done so ever since their passing.

I am completely on my own with not a soul to care. I have no way even to store my belongings. I have no savings and am furiously looking for work. I can't rent. I can't get a loan and any job I get is fraught with harassment thanks to the sabotage. I apologize everyday to my hard-working parents who sacrificed to give me an education and a good life and left me their legacy - our home. My demise is their demise. It negates the hopes and dreams of two generations of great, salt of the earth, people. Thank you for listening and PLEASE do everything you can to help.

This is my ONLY hope.

Please share the link with all your email lists, facebook, twitter, and all social media. And when you decide how to help please put yourself in my shoes, facing a terrible fate through no fault of your own. Having done everything right with your life and still ending up in this situation. Your destiny out of your hands. Powerless. Please do what you would want me to do on your behalf if the roles were reversed.

This fundraiser is for $1996 in outstanding PROPERTY TAXES DUE in March 2018.

Lastly, and this is the part I wanted to keep private because I still need to find work immediately. While I was on my knees with panic over the taxes I was diagnosed with cancer last year.

Because time is so critically short, I am asking for 10 people to give 200. That saves my home and lets me focus on my health. Just so you know I have the money in my retirement account but they won't release it. I just found out yesterday when I called to transfer the money.

God bless you and thank you so very much.