A helping push for Deven.

Hello everyone. This call for help is mainly going out to nothing but friends and family members that already know me, so I don't think there's too much of a need to introduce myself. It's still just me, ol' Deven pushing through life like anyone else.

First, I want to say that this is very difficult for me for many reasons. I've come to a place in my life where I can't get through alone. If you know me, I'm a very proud and independent individual who handles all of their business in privacy and with extreme confidence. I've always been in a place where I am in control of my situation and can take it alone. Yet, I am not at this point in life any longer and need to make enormous sacrifices... especially with my pride, and I'll let you read that story now.

The entire year of 2022 has been a complete journey for me. Firstly, I have gotten out of the military after a long nine years of building a great status and comforting benefits and pay. I decided to get out of the service to spend more time with my kids, especially after a tolling divorce. This process has been very hard for me as it made me a single father taking care of three young kids while losing the benefits of security that came with the military, as well as attending college at the same time to set up a better financial future for myself and my lineage. I am in the final month of my schooling before I am able to start that new career and carry on with a good foundation to push forward in my life with. Yet, there have been many obstacles that have come with that recently. I have been using income from military disability, unemployment, as well as the G.I. bill (Veteran College Funding), to carry me month to month as I transition from the comforts of a long military career to a new civilian life. At the same time of this hard transition I have had other more personal obstacles come into my life such as a fire at my apartment complex, leading me to hand over my kids until it was deemed safe and liveable for them to stay with me, and a constant legal battle within the court system from their mother to take them entirely away from me. These extra occurrences have strained my finances to the very brim of just getting by at the start of being monthly, to weekly, and now every day. Yet, in good news, I have won to keep custody of my children to be shared jointly! But it has put me in a bad spot financially... This is still only the beginning.

I was informed that I was owed over $10,000 by unemployment through backpay, and the military. I filed to have this given to me, had endless conversations on the phone about this matter and was told I would be approved to get it all. To my surprise I received letters through the mail that not only was my backpay not approved through a fault in their system, but I was to be ceased all payments by all government programs I was getting money from through my transition to my next career. I went from getting paid to get me through month to month, to zero payment altogether. I scrambled to remedy the situation. I called all of the establishments (Unemployment, G.I. Bill, California Assistance), with no help whatsoever. I was actually told on the phone by government assistance to, "hang in there." This all happened in the month of august. Since then I have filled appeals through the court to get what I have been owed which takes months upon months to resolve. I have also tried working flexible jobs such as doordash and instacart just to pay essential bills such as utilities and daycare for the kids just for me to make it to school and finish. I've donated blood, plasma, as well as sold some of my most valuable and personal belongings to make it through to the next week. All while still trying to maintain my kids innocence by keeping them comfortable, out of the drama, and understanding that I will always provide for them by any means possible. It has now come to the point where I am now 27 days past rent for the month of september while facing eviction. I fear that if I am not able to get at least a little bit of the situation remedied I will be forced to move back home to Colorado, thus ultimately losing my children as I have been attacked in that aspect at every turn. Court orders from my divorce state that I do not move my kids out of the county of San Diego. (My family all lives in Colorado, and the East coast, so I am in a sense "alone" physically.) I've come to an end of the road spiritually, mentally, and physically where I have nowhere else to go but to let go of my pride in doing things myself and ask for help... again, this is why I first stated that this is very difficult for me. If you have even just took the time out of your day to read this story I thank you very much! If you have a compulsion to help me financially through this gofundme page or even my cashapp ($DZJones92), thank you so much! And if you do not have the funds to support, but have a word of encouragement for me, a prayer, or any resources you know are reliable and safe please do not hesitate to send that to me.. again, thank you all so much! God bless you all. I know we all go through it, and that's exactly my point in life right now.

Thank you,

Deven