Cancer patient wants to buy a home and retire

Hi, I'm Beth and I'm currently going through breast cancer (had a bilateral mastectomy October 9, 2023, a surgery for necrosis November 2, 2023, and there will be a third cancer surgery probably in February or March of this year (to remove tissue expanders and replace with medical implants). I'm about to turn 54 at the end of January, and I'm divorced (I prefer unspoused lol). I'm a public defender (we don't make much money compared to other attorneys) and have been since 2005, though I did leave for 2 years to try to have my own firm. Living on my own since 2019 and my failed firm from 2014-2016, caused me to run up my credit cards to pay for a website and other firm expenses and then getting divorced and moving into an apartment where I started from scratch didn't help my credit cards either. Before I got cancer in 2023, I got aggressive about paying down credit cards and paid off 3 credit cards, then got the devastating news on August 1, 2023 that I had breast cancer. I currently have 5 credit cards with a total amount of debt around $39,800ish that I would like to pay off with this gofundme (I added more to the amount sought to try to account for processing fees).

I feel my credit card debt is a huge impediment to buying a house. Why do I need to buy a house? I want to be able to retire instead of working my way into my grave like my mother did when she died of the same breast cancer at age 58. I think the earliest I can retire is age 62.5, and I'd like to retire around that age and I don't feel like I can do that on my Public Defender pension while having monthly credit card payments and renting an apartment; rent has only gone up since I moved into my apartment, and interest rates have made it more difficult to make headway on credit card debt.

I'm not seeking money for my medical care for breast cancer. My problem is the cancer has put me in a position where I can't be aggressive with paying off my credit card debt like I was before I got cancer; I think I need to pay off as much debt as possible to put me in a good position to buy a house, which will then hopefully allow me to retire in about 10 years (I'm of course assuming that my mortgage will stay the same over the next decade while my salary will increase yearly).

Should you have sympathy for me? No. I took a risk in life with my own firm and that failed, and I divorced my husband with no safety net. Are there people on here in worse positions than me who deserve your money? Yes. So if you're still here and reading, where would your money go?

The donations I receive will go towards paying off my credit card debt. If my campaign is met and keeps growing, the extra money will go towards a home inspection, a down payment, closing costs, and/or moving expenses (note: due to the bilateral mastectomy, I'm still restricted to only being able to lift/push/pull 20 lbs ).

Thank you for reading. If you personally don't want to donate (or can't) but know someone who might, I would greatly appreciate you sharing this campaign.

Happy new year to everyone, and may 2024 be a healthy and prosperous year for you all!

Love,

Beth