Tiffany Schafler Memorial
Donation protected
Dear family and friends,
Many of you are already aware of the trials that our family has endured these last 2 years or so. For those of you who are not, I would like to explain the reason for this letter.
In September of 2011, my wife Tiffany was hospitalized for the first time with a life-threatening condition that is life-long and chronic. She had to be hospitalized three additional times over the next 10 months. Thankfully she has not had to be admitted again since June of last year but these illnesses have taken a severe toll on her overall health and on our family and our finances. In November 2011, in the midst of Tiffany's illness, I lost my job of more than 20 years with Southern Company and I was not offered a severance package for my many years of service. I have been on many interviews since then and despite a continuous job search I have been unable to gain full-time employment. I did receive unemployment benefits of $330 per week for many months but benefits ended in February 2013. When this ordeal began we had retirement and savings but in an effort to keep our heads above water and keep our family home we have long since exhausted them. Despite numerous requests to have the government intervene on our behalf, which included reaching out to our Congressman and The White House, for aid from government programs designed to assist families in similar conditions, we have received no help to this day and/or we kept getting the runaround and redirected. Now, after a year of negotiations, the bank began the foreclosure process in March of 2013. The house failed to sell at auction on June 4th, which was a temporary reprieve, but to our surprise, the bank almost immediately notified us that we would have to be out of the house by July 19th, which brings me to the purpose of this letter.
As you can well imagine, the prospect of finding a place to live on such short notice with no money is a frightening thing. I have recently been able to get a part-time retail job which is barely enough to pay some of the house bills.
My parents are in Texas, Tiffany's mom is in Wisconsin and they are straining to help us where they can every month. Two of our children have finished college. Meghann has been helping us with paying home bills while Alex is looking for a full-time job. Sasha and Sean are still in school. If we leave Georgia for Texas or Wisconsin, Sasha and Sean will lose the HOPE Scholarships they have worked so hard to receive which is allocated to residents of this State. So we are hoping to stay in Georgia.
Considering my part-time job and the help we receive from our immediate family, as of this moment we have no way to pay a deposit, the first and last month's rent required nor any funds to be able to relocate. I am writing to ask for your help so that we may be able to raise emergency funds to accomplish this difficult task before the July 19th deadline.
The decision to ask for help in this way was not an easy one. I have always been able to provide for my family and I never expected to be in this position, but I believe the Lord is leading us to make this request. We would be sincerely grateful for any assistance that you could provide. We appreciate your prayers and we believe that God works through the prayers of His people. If you are able, we would be thankful for any financial contribution that you could make. No amount is too small to help.
We trust that the Lord will bless you as a result of your generosity,
Alex Schäfler and Family.
Many of you are already aware of the trials that our family has endured these last 2 years or so. For those of you who are not, I would like to explain the reason for this letter.
In September of 2011, my wife Tiffany was hospitalized for the first time with a life-threatening condition that is life-long and chronic. She had to be hospitalized three additional times over the next 10 months. Thankfully she has not had to be admitted again since June of last year but these illnesses have taken a severe toll on her overall health and on our family and our finances. In November 2011, in the midst of Tiffany's illness, I lost my job of more than 20 years with Southern Company and I was not offered a severance package for my many years of service. I have been on many interviews since then and despite a continuous job search I have been unable to gain full-time employment. I did receive unemployment benefits of $330 per week for many months but benefits ended in February 2013. When this ordeal began we had retirement and savings but in an effort to keep our heads above water and keep our family home we have long since exhausted them. Despite numerous requests to have the government intervene on our behalf, which included reaching out to our Congressman and The White House, for aid from government programs designed to assist families in similar conditions, we have received no help to this day and/or we kept getting the runaround and redirected. Now, after a year of negotiations, the bank began the foreclosure process in March of 2013. The house failed to sell at auction on June 4th, which was a temporary reprieve, but to our surprise, the bank almost immediately notified us that we would have to be out of the house by July 19th, which brings me to the purpose of this letter.
As you can well imagine, the prospect of finding a place to live on such short notice with no money is a frightening thing. I have recently been able to get a part-time retail job which is barely enough to pay some of the house bills.
My parents are in Texas, Tiffany's mom is in Wisconsin and they are straining to help us where they can every month. Two of our children have finished college. Meghann has been helping us with paying home bills while Alex is looking for a full-time job. Sasha and Sean are still in school. If we leave Georgia for Texas or Wisconsin, Sasha and Sean will lose the HOPE Scholarships they have worked so hard to receive which is allocated to residents of this State. So we are hoping to stay in Georgia.
Considering my part-time job and the help we receive from our immediate family, as of this moment we have no way to pay a deposit, the first and last month's rent required nor any funds to be able to relocate. I am writing to ask for your help so that we may be able to raise emergency funds to accomplish this difficult task before the July 19th deadline.
The decision to ask for help in this way was not an easy one. I have always been able to provide for my family and I never expected to be in this position, but I believe the Lord is leading us to make this request. We would be sincerely grateful for any assistance that you could provide. We appreciate your prayers and we believe that God works through the prayers of His people. If you are able, we would be thankful for any financial contribution that you could make. No amount is too small to help.
We trust that the Lord will bless you as a result of your generosity,
Alex Schäfler and Family.
Organizer
Alex Schäfler
Organizer
McDonough, GA
