Please do not scroll past this. 

I am asking for help because we have reached a point where pride is a luxury. 

We are in crisis. 

No jobs yet, despite nonstop applications and interviews. My client work has nearly vanished. Food is low. Medications are gone. Utilities are due. The mortgage is in default, and I am fighting to keep us housed. 

We are donating plasma and doing everything we can to survive this stretch. 

There is no support coming from family or from my estranged spouse. He even kept the entire tax return after claiming us last year. We go day to day unsure if he's alive. 

I keep believing effort will turn the corner. I have to believe that. But right now, effort alone is not enough. 

We need help. 

If you can donate, please do. If you can share, please share widely. 

This is about food, medicine, utilities, and keeping our home while we keep pushing for work, and trying to survive long enough to build something beyond mere survival. 

I am asking because it is urgent. 

I am asking because my kids need me to ask. 

I am asking because we need community right now. 

Thank you for reading. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for helping us hold on. 

************ 
 
June Update: 

Thank you to everyone who has donated and shared this fundraiser. You've kept us going through a year that has tested every single one of us, and I don't take that lightly.

Here's where we are.

I'm working. Multiple jobs. I'm a Personal Car

 Assistant for several companies now, certified in CPR, First Aid, and PCA work. Between shifts I'm driving for Uber, DoorDash, and Instacart, picking up TaskRabbit and Craigslist gigs, coaching writers, editing manuscripts. The problem has never been effort. We have never been sitting still.

We've made real ground too. I have car insurance again. We got everything out of storage and closed that unit for good. These are small wins that cost us enormous effort, and we claimed them anyway.

Housing is still uncertain. My estranged husband has been largely unreachable for months. He recently made contact, says he's working on a forbearance. I haven't seen anything in writing, and the last official word pointed toward foreclosure. I'm planning for the worst while holding space for better.

My sons are struggling. Two of them are fighting serious depression and self-harm, and only one has access to medication right now. I'm managing my own health without what I need while keeping this household running. We keep going anyway. That's what we do.

What I need is several thousand dollars in the next two weeks. Keeping a roof over our heads, utilities on, the car road-legal, medications accessible, and the legal costs to finally untangle this marriage and get us out of limbo.

If you can give, give. If you can share, share. Y'all have already proven that community is real. I'm asking you to prove it one more time.
 
*******

April Update: Still Here, Still Trying 

Hi y'all. 

We're still in the house for now. Foreclosure has been temporarily stalled through a modified loan, which bought us time but didn’t fix the financial crisis underneath it. 
 
The situation that caused all of this is still unresolved, and there is currently no financial support coming in from that direction. Read: my ex who abandoned us has been missing for months; as far as we know, he's alive and in some kind of treatment. That has left us trying to keep up with past-due utilities, ongoing bills, and basic needs on our own. 
 
Right now we’re dealing with: 

• No health insurance 

• Paying for medications out of pocket 

• Repeatedly going on and off diabetes medication 

• My car still isn’t insured or tagged 

• House repairs happening slowly with only what we can manage ourselves 
 
There've been a few small personal wins--the yard cleanup is finally progressing, I've applied for a doctoral program, and my editing business is growing (although slowly). We’re doing everything we can to stabilize day by day, but it’s still extremely fragile. I'm extremely fragile... 
 
If you’ve donated or shared this fundraiser before, please know it has genuinely kept us afloat. 

If you can donate or share again, it would help more than I can say. Even spreading the word makes a difference. 
 
Thank you to everyone who has helped carry us this far. 
 
**February Update: We’re Still Standing Somehow** 
 
Wins first (because they're amazing!!): 

I’m over a year cigarette-free after 30 years. 

I survived Valentine’s Day and what would’ve been my 16th wedding anniversary on my own. 

I’m paying bills and adulting without training wheels for the first time in my life. 

I’ve signed new clients and my creative energy is finally coming back. 

We came off all our meds suddenly and somehow didn’t lose our minds or turn on each other. 

I'm coming up on the 2 year anniversary of my debut 

novel Moon Dust In My Hairnet. 
 
Ongoing Reality: 

Derek is still AWOL and providing no support. 

No family safety net or help. 

No job prospects landing for the boys yet. 

No health insurance or medications. 

Abandoned junk in the yard is becoming a real problem. 

Food assistance isn’t stretching far enough, even in a short month. 
 
Current Needs: 

People reaching out. Iykyk 

Help or resources for house repairs and cleanup. 

Help accessing medications. 

Financial support to keep us afloat while we stabilize. 
 
If you can donate, share this, check in, or connect us to resources, PLEASE do. 
 
January TL;DR: A lot changed quickly — unstable housing, sudden job loss, and loss of health insurance — but we’re still standing and moving forward. If you’re able to share or support again, it truly helps while we stabilize and rebuild. 
 
First, thank you. Truly. The support, messages, and sharing have kept us upright through a stretch that has changed shape more than once. I want to share what’s shifted, where we are now, and what would help next. 
 
After leaving my marital home during separation, we were staying with my mother while trying to sell the house. Over time, she demanded unilateral changes to expectations and terms, continuing a longstanding pattern of moving the goalposts without regard for impact. That environment became unsustainable, and we have since returned to the house. While far from resolved, being back here is currently more stable than remaining in that situation. 
 
At the same time, my ex, who has been increasingly unreachable, was fired from Caterpillar for embezzlement. That job loss came with the immediate loss of our health insurance. As a result, all of us were suddenly cut off from essential medications and care. We are working to secure COBRA coverage, but that's another significant expense layered onto an already fragile situation. 
 
Right now, our belongings are safe in storage through June. We’re doing our best to make do and stabilize while we figure out next steps. I have a few promising job leads, but between moving disruptions, insurance loss, and being abruptly unmedicated, I haven’t yet had the time or capacity to fully pursue them. That's changing, but it’s not instantaneous. 
 
I also want to acknowledge the broader moment we’re living in. There is a lot of grief and upheaval happening well beyond our household—strikes, protests, and people fighting to be seen and protected. I don’t have much to offer right now beyond presence and witness, but I'm holding space daily for that collective pain, even as we work to keep our own footing. 
 
I want to be clear: we are scared AND we are resolved. We are taking concrete steps forward, even while the ground keeps shifting. This fundraiser continues to help with basic stability during this transition-- housing continuity, medical gaps, food access, and transportation--as the boys and I work toward sustainable income. 
 
If you’ve already donated or shared, thank you more than I can say. If you’re able to share this again or help amplify it, that genuinely matters right now. Even visibility helps. 
 
I’m deeply grateful for the care and support people have shown us. We’re still here, still moving forward, and still committed to getting through this with honesty and dignity. 
 
Thank you for standing with us. 
 
**EMERGENCY UPDATE 12/22/2025** 

tl;Dr The plan collapsed. We lost our home with no funds, no relocation, and no clear way forward. 
 
Hard Update: The House Sale Failed, and Our Safety Net Is Gone 

Hi everyone, 

I wish this update were hopeful. It's not. 

I need to be honest about what's happened. 

The plan we were working toward--selling the house so we could stabilize and relocate--collapsed completely. The sale was scheduled. Then it was terminated. I haven't been read in on all the details, but the result is simple: 

The house can’t be sold. 

There is no money coming from it. 

Everything we were counting on disappeared at once. 
 
That means relocation is off the table. I currently have about $200 total, and there's no new income expected until April at the earliest. Even with drastically reduced spending and staying with family, we still have bills. We still have food needs. We still have medical needs. There's no cushion. 

The house itself is now just… stuck. 

No funds for a new life. 

No funds even for this life. 

No forward motion, only loss. 
 
At the same time, I’ve received new medical diagnoses, and my insurance has denied care repeatedly. Treatments and medications I need aren't being covered, and I can't afford them out of pocket. Managing my health has become harder at the worst possible moment. 
 
We're still staying with family, but it's not a long-term solution, and the uncertainty weighs on all of us. 
 
I'm working on securing more editing clients, but payments are two months away, assuming nothing else falls through. My sons are also looking for work. They both have GEDs and are seeking part-time, entry-level jobs (retail, food service, pet services, anything available). So far, they aren’t even getting replies, which has been extremely discouraging. 
 
I need to say this clearly, hard as it is: 

We are out of options we know how to solve alone. 

Every path we were trying to walk closed at the same time. We are scared and exhausted. After so much loss already, it feels unbearable to have the future shut down again. 
 
I know no one owes us rescue, and I’m not asking to be carried. I just want to name that the care and help we’ve received so far have helped us keep going when we didn't know how to. Thank you all for that. 
 
If you can help in any way, here’s what matters most right now: 
 
Please share. 
 
Donate, if you’re able. Even small amounts help cover food, basic bills, and medications. 
 
Reach out if you have leads on authors who need a coach or an editor, or leads on part-time, entry-level work for two motivated young adults. 
 
Include us--in prayers, community, connection, or networking. We really need to not be alone through this. 
 
Thank you for reading. Thank you for caring. 
 
With gratitude and the hope that your holidays feel less chilly (and shitty) than ours, 

Jess, Cipher, and Adam 

------XXXXX-------- 

I feel humiliated asking for money this way, but I'm too desperate to let that stop me. Unless I come up with this house payment before the end of the month, I don't just lose the house to instant foreclosure, I lose EVERYTHING I've worked for since 2000. 

Every unmet need, every skipped holiday and birthday, every penny pinched to reach "the dream" of owning our own home--all will be gone. It will all be lost to my lying, cheating spouse's terrible financial mismanagement, and the kids and I will have nothing at all to show for the years of sacrifice and saving that have defined their whole lives. 
 
Please, if you have even a dollar to give to help us, it will make a difference. If I can make this ONE payment, I can get this house sold and recover at least half of the equity in it to restart my and my kids' lives. 
 
9/15/2025 PLEASE HELP?? 

*** 
 
One month ago, my world cracked open. I discovered my husband cheating, unraveled years worth of lies and neglect, and learned the home we'd fought so hard for was a breath away from foreclosure. My heart was beyond broken, but I chose to step forward into a new chapter of safety, dignity, and possibility. 

A lot has changed in a month, and we've secured shelter and food but no steady income yet. What we need are the resources that make stability possible while I job hunt and the kids finish their education so we can secure our future. 
 
This is not a story about barely surviving. This is about survivors healing and fighting for the chance to thrive. That’s how your support comes in. 
 
How far we've come already: 

We have assistance for food. 

Kids are in GED classes. 

I’m chasing every lead I can for work and growing my editing business. 

We got our own phone plan, so we’re connected for school, appointments, and interviews. 

Essentials got moved into storage for safekeeping. 

We said goodbye to our dog, Leto, with love and dignity. 

We moved in with family to share resources. 
 
We’ve well on our way to reconstructing our broken lives. Your support fuels the next steps. 
 
What your donation does: 

Gas: $160/week for kids’ classes + daily job hunt trips 

Vehicle repair &amp; maintenance: $200–$400 

Work clothes &amp; shoes: $100–$150/person 

Medicines: $100/person/month for daily meds; $1,400/month for critical prescription not yet started 

Medical &amp; dental care: wisdom teeth for the kids; dental reconstruction for me ($3,000–$10,000) 

Storage: $100/month 

Legal cushion: $500–$15,000 for filings, retainer, and protection from Derek’s debt &amp; potential foreclosure 
 
Why now: 

We’re at the critical start of our rebuilding journey. Every day without resources slows our progress forward. Every donation buys mobility, health, and security. You’re helping us transform momentum into real, lasting independence. 
 
The outcome: 
 
We are the family to root for. Every contribution fuels progress: the kids’ education and future opportunities, my work, our protection, and our health. Your support helps turn chaos into momentum, and momentum into independence.

Jessica Hernandez

Katie Spina

Anonymous

Erin kennedy

Ericka Covalt

Kathryn Rahhal

Sarah Middlemast

NOW OR NEVER FOR US

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