Hello, my name is Dee, and my partner, Allison and I are asking for your help as we navigate a heartbreaking and difficult transition. This past year has been nothing short of devastating, filled with challenges that have pushed us to our limits.

Asking for help in any capacity is difficult for me, and asking for money outright, honestly makes me feel sick, but here I am. 

We bought our home with Allison’s dad, Will, who was a veteran of the United States Air Force and retired from the Federal Government’s Department of Agriculture. After retirement, he pursued his passion for antiques and opened a shop in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. Will had Allison late in his life, and their relationship was strained after Allison’s mom passed away when she was a teenager. Her death caused Will to spiral emotionally and sever his relationship with Allison for many years.

Tragically, this period of estrangement allowed Will to be taken advantage of by people in his life. His lawyer, a longtime family friend, encouraged him to sell everything, including Allison’s childhood home, with the justification that “you can’t take money to the grave.” This advice led to women taking advantage of Will, including one who received multiple cars and a monthly allowance. She once accompanied him to a doctor’s appointment where the doctor noted signs of cognitive decline. Despite being told of Will’s condition, she promised to help him but instead moved him into cheaper housing with no medical assistance while continuing to benefit from his allowances and gifts. Completely draining his savings. 

During this time, Allison had no knowledge of the situation, as her relationship with Will was still severed. Once Will was back in our lives and we realized what had happened, we tried to pursue legal action against the woman. However, we were told that since Will was safe in our care, there was nothing that could be done.

Shortly after moving in with us, Will’s dementia and Alzheimer’s progressed rapidly, and within two months, we became his full-time guardians. Caring for him at home drastically changed our lives.

After we became his guardians, the mortgage company gave us hell, demanding that in order to talk to us or to even take our money that they needed to talk to Will first. Despite the fact that he was incapacitated and it would anger him to the point where even if we could get him to repeat what we whisper to him, so that he was actually answering their questions. Allison would then have to go hide to talk to them and I would have to try and get him to be sedated before he would get physically violent. 

When Will passed away at the end of December 2023, we submitted his death certificate to the mortgage company many times, hoping they would finally offer some leniency. Instead, they ignored our submissions, still sending mail and dispatching people to our home looking for him, as if he were still alive. Their unwillingness to acknowledge his passing or our situation has been a constant source of pain and frustration.

Adding to this pain, Allison’s aunt—who had always promised to help us if we needed it—stopped speaking to us shortly after Will’s passing. At the time, our money was tied up in probate, and we asked her for a small loan to help cover bills and groceries for just one month. We haven’t heard from her since, leaving us feeling abandoned during one of the most challenging times in our lives.

Since his passing, the struggles have only compounded.

In January 2024, our HVAC system failed. We later learned that the units were mismatched in age and should never have been sold together. Shortly after, a window air unit flooded, revealing severe structural damage caused by issues like a lack of gutters and a poorly sloped driveway. Insurance left us high and dry, and we’ve been left with chunks of missing walls and mounting repair costs.

In the spring and summer, we dealt with a ringworm outbreak that affected both our foster and personal animals, and my car broke down due to minor but unaffordable repairs. Without plates and registration, it has been unusable, adding another layer of stress.

Allison has battled significant mental health challenges over the past year, including multiple hospitalizations and periods of intensive outpatient treatment. Her struggles, understandably, made it difficult for her to maintain consistent employment, which further impacted our financial stability. However, since her mental health team changed in August, things have been on the upswing. She’s been making strides toward stability, but playing catchup on everything we fell behind on hasn’t been going well.

As Allison’s primary support system, I’ve had to manage not only the household but also the emotional weight of her mental health crisis while dealing with my own stress and mental health. The pressure of caregiving, fighting to save our home, and managing the day-to-day needs of our large animal family has made it difficult for me to focus consistently on my own work. My ability to contribute financially has suffered, as I’ve often had to prioritize immediate crises over steady income. The cumulative emotional toll has been overwhelming, leaving me feeling constantly stretched thin and struggling to find moments of peace or stability.

In July, someone came knocking, asking for Allison’s dad, Will. We consulted a lawyer who told us the best we could do was to let the house go and that we would likely be given definitive information by October. That information never came, and we lived in fear for months, unable to plan or make progress. We were never given a clear date for when we would lose possession of the house, which heightened our anxiety. We’ve been terrified to leave the house empty, worried we’d return to find lockboxes on the doors and our animals trapped inside.

Finally, we’ve connected with a real estate agent who has been a beacon of hope. She has provided us with the first clear answers we’ve had in months and believes there may be legal cases we can pursue for the wrongdoings we’ve experienced. She also promised to connect us with a potential rental home where we can keep our personal and foster animals, but two days later, she ghosted us. We got in contact with another realtor that promised to help, but again, two days later said that there was nothing he could do. 

Allison finally got the mortgage company to talk to her and take a look at our file, turns out they’ve been getting all of our documents but there are no notes in our file as to why everything has been denied, and it’s too late to save the house. 

We are now racing against the clock to find some sort of shelter and with our animals in tow, that won’t be easy. 

As of 2/4 - due to another bump in the road, we are now down to one car, so even if we were to go up to Michigan temporarily and squeeze in my parents basement, we cannot transport all of our animals at once. Not to mention, my parents are allergic. - the update regarding the motor home options seems to be our best bet, in order to have safety and time to figure out where our next step will be. 

Where Your Contributions Will Go

We are asking for $17,000 to help us transition during this incredibly difficult time. Here’s how the funds will be used:

1. Moving Expenses – This includes deposits for the rental home, transportation for us and our animals, hiring help if needed, and ensuring we have the resources to leave our current home safely and promptly.

2. Immediate Financial Relief – Covering overdue bills, registration and repairs for our vehicle, and other essential costs to get back on our feet during the move.

3. Legal Expenses – Any funds beyond what’s needed for the immediate move will go toward pursuing legal action for the wrongdoings we’ve experienced in the past year.

4. A Fresh Start – Ultimately, we want to rebuild stability for ourselves and our animals. If we’re able to surpass our immediate needs, the remaining funds will be saved for a down payment on a new home where we can truly begin again.

Every contribution—no matter the size—will help us move forward. If you can’t donate, sharing our story means just as much and helps us reach more people who might be able to lend a hand.

Thank you for reading and for any help you can provide during this incredibly difficult time!