A single mother raised 12 children in this small Capitol Hill rowhouse. An anonymous donner just paid the delinquent taxes of $16,721 and saved it from a tax lien. We are forever greatful. Our next step is to do probate and renovate the house. Please help us.

For more than 60 years, our family home on Capitol Hill (Washington, DC) has been the center of our lives. It is where twelve children were raised, where generations gathered, and where our mother built a future for her family against overwhelming odds.

Today, thanks to an anonymous donner and the fund reaiser that home is no longer at risk.

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The $16,721 in unpaid property taxes was paid on March 31, 2026, by an anonymous person. The District of Columbia will not be selling a tax lien on the property this July. We will not lose our family house.

The text below will be updated.

Saving the house means preserving more than a building. It means protecting the legacy of the woman who sacrificed everything to create it.

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Our Mother’s Story

Our mother Johnnie D. Kenneybrew came to Washington, DC from Idabel, Oklahoma during the Great Migration in the early 1950s with our father. She was born in 1935 and grew up working in cotton fields before moving to Washington in search of better opportunities.

She had 7 children with our father and after their separation had 5 children with our step father. She eventually became the single mother of twelve children.

Despite enormous challenges, she worked nights as a cleaning lady and raised her children with discipline, faith, and determination. She made sure we went to school, went to church every Sunday, and understood the importance of hard work.

Her greatest dream was to give her children a stable home.

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The Story That Changed Our Lives

In 1973, one of her sons won a reading contest featured in The Washington Post. The article described our mother’s life raising twelve children alone while working nights. Our landlord was deeply moved by the story.

In an extraordinary act of compassion and generosity, she sold our mother the entire house a few months later in 1973 for $10,000, allowing rent payments to count toward ownership. At a time when many Black families could not obtain bank loans, this opportunity changed our lives forever.

Our mother became a homeowner, and the house became the foundation of our family.

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60 Years of Family Life

Our family first moved into the building in 1966, when it was a crowded multiple apartment house. Our family of fourteen lived in a small apartment upstairs while other families lived on the lower floor and the basement.

Life was not easy, but our mother never stopped fighting for a better future for her children.

Over time, the house became a real home. She planted flowers in the front yard. Children built swings, club houses, tree houses in the backyard where we played. It became the place where birthdays were celebrated and where family gathered for holidays.

For more than six decades, this house has held our family’s memories.

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A Neighborhood That Has Changed

Our home is in the heart of Capitol Hill, just a short walk from the US Capitol, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the Smithsonian museums—places where we as children often played and visited.

When our family lived here in the 1960s and 1970s, Capitol Hill was a diverse, working-class neighborhood with many Black families. Over the decades, the area has undergone dramatic gentrification and rising housing costs. Today, very few Black families remain in the neighborhood, and our home stands as one of the last reminders of the families who built their lives here.

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The Condition of the House

The house, built in 1925 during Washington, DC’s early 20th-century rowhouse expansion, reflects the historic character of Capitol Hill. It is currently in serious disrepair.

The original roof needs urgent repair, and much of the original interior will require renovation to make the home safe and livable again. City inspectors have already noted the deteriorating condition.

Without immediate action, the house risks further damage and eventual fines and ruin while legal issues (probate) remain unresolved.

Saving this home is about more than paying taxes — it’s about preserving the place our mother worked so hard to obtain.

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What Happened

Our mother passed away in 1995.

Unfortunately, probate for her estate was never completed. Our family has struggled to reach agreement about how to handle the estate, which unfortunately delayed probate for 30 years. Family members continued paying property taxes for almost 30 years while trying to resolve the estate.

However, we recently discovered that almost two years of property taxes remain unpaid, creating the urgent situation we face today.

If these taxes are not paid, the property could face a tax lien sale.

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The Property Is Still In Our Mother's Name And Cannot Be Legally Sold, Refinanced, or Divided Among Heirs Without Probate.

Until the estate obligations are resolved, the home cannot be legally sold, refinanced, or divided among heirs. Our immediate goal is simply to pay the delinquent taxes and begin the legal process (formal probate) needed to protect the home.

Because probate was never opened, once this happens the estate must first resolve:

• reimbursement of almost 30 years of property taxes paid by a few family members

• legal fees and court costs required to open formal probate

• potential capital gains taxes if the property were sold

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What We Need to Raise

We are hoping to raise $48,700 to cover urgent costs:

• Estimated $3,000 to $12,000 per year — probate bond required by the court

• $20,000 — legal fees to open probate and resolve the estate.

These funds will allow us to:

• Open formal probate with the DC Probate Court

• Appoint a personal representative

• Begin legally protecting the family home

If additional funds are raised, they will go toward essential repairs needed to stabilize the property.

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A Final Request

Our mother never gave up on her children.

Through hard work, faith, and determination, she created a home where twelve children could grow and build their lives.

Today we are trying to honor that legacy.

We are very thankful and we praise God that the home our mother fought so hard to obtainand and keep is saved from a tax lien.

Every donation, no matter the size, brings us closer to protecting this home and preserving our family’s history.

If you cannot donate, sharing this campaign can make an enormous difference.

No raffles, sweepstakes, giveaways, or returns on investment are offered in exchange for any donations made to this GoFundMe.

We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for helping us preserve not just a house, but a lifetime of love, sacrifice, and memories.