Help Us Get Housing #Covid19relief

My name is Lindsey Stapleton. I am a 28 year old struggling to survive amidst the covid-19 pandemic. I know that I am just one example, one situation and one number in a country and world experiencing financial and social difficulties in this crisis due to the coronavirus, but with determination and perseverance, I am hopeful that with the help of my community and my peers, I can reach my goal amount to make this campaign a successful story that will go on to become viral and can then #Payitforward to aid others in situations like mine.                                The Back Story-        In February of 2020, my family and I moved to Tri Cities, WA with the hopes of finding work; We had just lost our apartment of 4 years after falling behind on rent. (Governor Inslee's orders to stop all evictions for tenants had not yet gone into effect.)  At this point in time, we began to experience homelessness for the first time in our lives, and unfortunately at the worst time possible. At the very exact time that we became homeless, the Coronavirus pandemic hit the world and brought us all to our knee's. My wife, Ashley, myself and our kitty, Gracie, began to sleep in our tiny 2005 Dodge Neon and, unbeknownst to us, was what we would call home from that point on.     Meanwhile, I had just started the application process to recieve housing assistance through a local Agency, The Housing Resource Center. The HRC was the "hub" if you will, for anyone attempting to recieve any sort of aid from local agencies in the community. I was confident that my family and I would be able to secure a place fairly quickly, (with the help of these local resources/agencies) and we would only temporarily be sheltering in our vehicle. I trusted in and had faith in the United States Government, as well as the programs that were available to us as United State's citizens; Afterall, these were organizations  that I knew could and would help us, that is what they do and are there for, right? That's when the coronavirus/Covid-19 pandemic hit. One by one, we watched as literally nearly every business closed their doors to us. It was beyond frightening to watch churches, DSHS, Community Action/Outreach programs, The Red Cross, The Salvation Army, United Way, Catholic Charities, The Saint Vincent de Paul Outreach and SO many more, the same places we put our trust and faith in during a time we needed them the most, places we thought would come to our aid and rescue, close down right before our eyes. Places that should have been able to help people in my situation find safe shelter/housing were telling us that they were closed until further notice and that they didn't have any funding available. It was all so disheartening and scary, let me tell you. During a time when Governor Inslee had ordered quarantine and Stay Home, Stay Healthy, where do the homeless go? Where should the homeless go when a deadly viral outbreak is sweeping across the nation and world as we know it? Homeless shelters no longer the solution nor a safe place to seek refugee.    To make matters even worse, my car was broken into one night and was no longer a place for us to seek shelter. The attempted theft was unsuccessful as far as actually physically taking the vehicle goes, but the vandalism to the car was insurmountable and a huge blow to our situation. The ignition cylinder was so badly damaged that the car's anti-theft system completely immobilized the vehicle and it could no longer successfully read my key. Left with a broken down, immobile car that we called home and repair costs that we cant afford, we have been struggling daily to come up with enough money to be able to get a hotel room.  We have since continued to reach out to the same agencies as we mentioned previously, but we are still met with the same responses .. They are either still closed due to Covid-19, (Benton County is one of the last counties in WA state to come off of restriction.), or they simply do not have any funds.                This is where I need Your Help-    This is where I need your help, badly and desperately. I cannot afford to pay for my car to be repaired, and that alone offered my family and I security in many obvious ways. The Dodge Dealership where I took it to tells me that first and foremost is a $100 diagnostic fee. I do not have an exact formal estimate yet as I am still waiting for it from the dealership, but I am confident in saying that it will cost at the very least, $300, if not more because of labor/parts on top of the diagnostic fee. I also need your help in securing a roof over our head. I intend to use donations for a hotel room as a short term housing solution. If my campaign, fingers crossed, reaches the goal amount, it will go towards first months, last months and a security deposit for a room or a 1 bedroom apartment.    I have seen the results and success stories of those that have campaigned on GoFundMe. I have faith in the hearts of those that take the time to read my family's story, that we can all come together, (any and every donation helps), and unite as a community, drawn to each other by the devastation , to help each one another, one family at a time, climb out of the poverty that we have succumbed to due in part to the coronavirus. One family at a time, let's do this guys. My family needs your help! #Payitforward.