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UPDATE Summer 2019:
We will again be hosting George for a week in August. If anyone has miles to offer for a ticket for him that would be greatly appreciated. All monies collected will go toward 1) plane ticket, 2) fun things/events for George while in California & 3) his family for car payments or other expenses. THANK YOU!
FROM Summer 2018:
Many of you met George last summer when he came to stay with us for a week of Santa Barbara summer fun. I have set up this GoFundMe campaign, after much prayer, with the hope of bringing George's whole family out for a week this summer.
BEING BULLIED AT SCHOOL....
George has had a rough year at school. He has been bullied for the last 2 years and his mother has been working with school personnel to address this problem. Shockingly, however, the father of a child who was bullying George entered the classroom one day during school last fall and assaulted George by pushing him down into his chair and getting in George's face yelling profanities.
Yes you read correctly, this occurred in a public elementary school, during school. George's mother pressed charges, the man pleaded guilty and spent 1 day in jail. He has a criminal record of violence so the 1 day in jail felt like no justice. It also left George feeling unsafe at school. This has lead to George not wanting to be in school and hence, acting out. George does have a counselor and she is working with him on dealing with fear but it has been a difficult situation for everyone. George feels abandoned by "the system" and afraid at school.
GEORGE'S MOM........
George's Mom is Mon Cheri. She and I met in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2001, when she was just 13 years old. I was her Big Sister thru a program of the Criminal Justice Chaplaincy of the Christian Reformed Church. Mon Cheri is now 30 years old, a single mother of 3 kids – George, age 10; Ariel, age 4; Jacob, age 2.
I have so much respect for Mon Cheri. She has had few breaks in her life: Mom went to prison when Mon Cheri was age 10. Dad was out of the picture and later gave up his parental rights in a courtroom when she was a teenager. I was in the courtroom that day and I would not wish the experience on anyone. Mon Cheri finished the last years of her childhood in a group home because there was no other suitable place for her, after we had moved to California.
Mon Cheri earned her GED after turning 18. She completed an Associates Degree in medical billing. She is a survivor of survivors. She always stays positive. She attends church regularly, doesn't smoke, drink, or take drugs, and is committed to giving her kids a better childhood than she had. I love her like a daughter and feel that her kids are my grandchildren. I only wish there weren't so many miles between us. We have known each other for 17 years!
THE ASK.....
Will you contribute to this campaign for Mon Cheri, George, Ariel, and Jacob?
I can think of no other family more appreciative and deserving of this blessing.
Your donation of any amount, large or small, is requested.
Mon Cheri is a mother who needs a break and I know that we can give it.
LET'S SEE HOW GOD BLESSES!
My goal for this fundraiser is as follows:
$1500 for plane tickets from Grand Rapids to Santa Barbara (Farhads are paying for George's ticket.)
$5000 toward car payments so she doesn't have to pay 6% interest on her auto loan
And if we really go crazy...
$1400 for a trip for 4 to Disney Land for 2 days with a 2 night hotel stay
$7900
We will again be hosting George for a week in August. If anyone has miles to offer for a ticket for him that would be greatly appreciated. All monies collected will go toward 1) plane ticket, 2) fun things/events for George while in California & 3) his family for car payments or other expenses. THANK YOU!
FROM Summer 2018:
Many of you met George last summer when he came to stay with us for a week of Santa Barbara summer fun. I have set up this GoFundMe campaign, after much prayer, with the hope of bringing George's whole family out for a week this summer.
BEING BULLIED AT SCHOOL....
George has had a rough year at school. He has been bullied for the last 2 years and his mother has been working with school personnel to address this problem. Shockingly, however, the father of a child who was bullying George entered the classroom one day during school last fall and assaulted George by pushing him down into his chair and getting in George's face yelling profanities.
Yes you read correctly, this occurred in a public elementary school, during school. George's mother pressed charges, the man pleaded guilty and spent 1 day in jail. He has a criminal record of violence so the 1 day in jail felt like no justice. It also left George feeling unsafe at school. This has lead to George not wanting to be in school and hence, acting out. George does have a counselor and she is working with him on dealing with fear but it has been a difficult situation for everyone. George feels abandoned by "the system" and afraid at school.
GEORGE'S MOM........
George's Mom is Mon Cheri. She and I met in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2001, when she was just 13 years old. I was her Big Sister thru a program of the Criminal Justice Chaplaincy of the Christian Reformed Church. Mon Cheri is now 30 years old, a single mother of 3 kids – George, age 10; Ariel, age 4; Jacob, age 2.
I have so much respect for Mon Cheri. She has had few breaks in her life: Mom went to prison when Mon Cheri was age 10. Dad was out of the picture and later gave up his parental rights in a courtroom when she was a teenager. I was in the courtroom that day and I would not wish the experience on anyone. Mon Cheri finished the last years of her childhood in a group home because there was no other suitable place for her, after we had moved to California.
Mon Cheri earned her GED after turning 18. She completed an Associates Degree in medical billing. She is a survivor of survivors. She always stays positive. She attends church regularly, doesn't smoke, drink, or take drugs, and is committed to giving her kids a better childhood than she had. I love her like a daughter and feel that her kids are my grandchildren. I only wish there weren't so many miles between us. We have known each other for 17 years!
THE ASK.....
Will you contribute to this campaign for Mon Cheri, George, Ariel, and Jacob?
I can think of no other family more appreciative and deserving of this blessing.
Your donation of any amount, large or small, is requested.
Mon Cheri is a mother who needs a break and I know that we can give it.
LET'S SEE HOW GOD BLESSES!
My goal for this fundraiser is as follows:
$1500 for plane tickets from Grand Rapids to Santa Barbara (Farhads are paying for George's ticket.)
$5000 toward car payments so she doesn't have to pay 6% interest on her auto loan
And if we really go crazy...
$1400 for a trip for 4 to Disney Land for 2 days with a 2 night hotel stay
$7900