My name is Michael Beavers. I am 53 years old and I've been disabled since 2004. I have degenerative disc disorder in my lumbar area of my spine. Also, both of my shoulders have tendinitis, and I have arthritis in just about all of my joints. I worked many jobs in my life, but for 17 years I was an EMT and worked for a private ambulance service, and I volunteered as a firefighter. I started at the age of 18 & I served my community up until the day my back finally gave out on me in Nov of 2004. At that time, I was working as a Safety & Security Officer for Norton & Kosair Hospitals for 5 years. But when my back gave out in Nov 2004, I had to go on short-term disability. And then finally in Nov of 2005, I had to go on long-term disability and I was let go from my job. I was unemployed until I was finally approved for Social Security Disability in 2008. I was lucky to have my parents to move back in with along with my son because I had gotten divorced in 2000. So if it wasn't for my parents, I would have been homeless.

Let's shoot to Christmas Eve 2019. My dad fell and broke his left hip. He spent a few weeks in the hospital and then a month in rehab. Then came home and was walking with a cane. Then the exact same day a year later on Christmas Eve 2020, he falls again but this time he breaks his right hip. This time he is in the hospital and rehab longer because he started getting dementia and wasn't able to walk on his own. So when he was released from the rehab center, my mom did not want to send him to a nursing home. She said she was gonna take care of him herself, which she did 24/7-365! They were each other's soulmates. I helped lift him from the bed and into his wheelchair and from his wheelchair to a recliner in the living room every day. I moved him from his wheelchair into my vehicle to take him to his doctor's appointments. Sadly, Dad passed on Aug 15th, 2021.

Mom was a rock. She was able to make sure that everything was always taken care of. She was always making sure that we all were fed, clothed, healthy, and happy. And she did it without a thought about how it would affect herself. When Dad passed, he passed in their bed at home next to her. She had a hard time going back into that room for a few weeks. But she also only left the house to go to her own doctor's appointments (that I drove her to) or to work out in the yard on her flowers. But then she started going back into their bedroom she barely ever came out except to go to her doctor's appointments.

Sadly, on Jan 15th, 2024, Mom had to be rushed to the hospital with difficulty breathing. She was in the hospital for a week. And then she went into respiratory arrest 2 times, passing away the 2nd time she stopped breathing. She was laid to rest in the same plot with my dad as they had planned.

Me, 53 years old, my older sister Tracy, 56 years old, and my son Austin, 31 years old, have all been living with my parents all this time. So Mom & Dad left the house to me & Tracy. But my sister is disabled and unable to work. She can barely walk with a walker, and she has a bad heart. They are talking about putting a pacemaker in her. She gets a disability check each month and was giving our mom $400 a month to help out with bills. She has a ton of debt she is trying to pay off before she will be able to help with more than the $400.

I can only work part-time with my disability issues. I was paying my mom $400 a month as well. And I too have a ton of bills. I'm slowly getting them paid off. But I have 4 major ones: a car payment, a cell phone bill & 2 credit card bills.

My son is moving out the first of next month. So we are losing all of his support. And he was a major contributor to our bills for the past few months once our savings that our mom left us dried up. And he claims he is gonna take our dog away from me too. Which is a whole other issue for me. Cause she is my emotional support that is the only thing helping with my serious depression that I’ve had before my dad, then my mom and finally my other support dog all died one after the other.

So that is my story. Now I know everyone has their own stories too. And I know I have no business asking you for help to help my family keep our heads above water. But we have honestly a total of over $150,000.00 in debt. That includes the house payment, 4 credit card accounts & cellphone bill. But to get us out of immediate danger and to pay off the stuff that is bleeding us dry so we can close the accounts, $70,000 for the house & $40,000 for the accounts.

So any help will be appreciated. I am not expecting anything. So even $1.00 will at least let me know I got someone's attention.