Please help my family: Lost everything to mold

UPDATE**** I am soooo close to being “back on track. This is just with the “main” necessary needs for my little family…. I know holidays are here. But if you find it in your heart to send $5.00. That adds up! 

Gift cards welcomed. I don’t like to put this all out there. But I need help. One income mama and anyone who knows me knows I work. I have NEVER been in this situation before. Which makes this all the more harder to ask! 

Please share!!! 

For those of you who do not know me, my name is Damaris Rivera, I’m a mother of 4 children. My oldest is 24, my other three are 12,7, and 5. In November of 2021 I confirmed through a licensed company that our home had mold and even live mold spores. This test was completed 3 months after I brought this to the landlords attention. The home had forced air and for months, since we had moved in, we were breathing, eating, just living in mold. Our clothes were damaged, our beds, furniture, our health was and has been damaged since our exposure. Requiring us to see specialists and costs for this are to much. It's all become to much and overwhelming.

During this time, for a short period, I slept in my vehicle and continued to work. I have been able to keep my job! Thankfully!!! I thought i found another place but the Landlord was violating so many city codes, The city refused to enforce the codes and I declined to renew my lease, leaving me looking for another place again! Still not having the kids back and now I see why! That place was not where God wanted us.

God has been so faithful and good to us. I’ve been able to replace our beds, some clothing, some shoes, linens, kitchen items.. I have a long way to go and have came to a point where I need a little financial help to help me get out of this. When I knew something was wrong, I asked the kids dad to temporarily help by keeping the kids, thinking my renters insurance would cover what we were losing. Behind my back he filed for sole decision making and since November of 2021, I have been fighting to get them back. The judge heard mold and assumed I was not keeping them in a healthy environment. (I was not permitted to speak, not that I could because I was in shock all I could do is cry, and crying in court is a no no!!) That has since been proven to not be the case. They are home!! They are home more and I did all of this with no attorney, no support system in place, this was done by Jesus! Jesus, he has been my attorney and he still is! Since the children have came back with school starting, I am in desperate, desperate need of dressers (tall dressers) a full size frame for mattress only bed , a desk chair for my 13- year old daughter, and clothing, clothing, clothing!!! I have been behind in bills because trying to start all over, living from check to check with no help is hard and I have done my best but our needs have brought me to a point where I have to humble myself and ask for help.

Some of you may say why didn't I create this earlier when everything happened? I didn't have my kids and if I needed to sleep in a car, then so be it. I tried to do as much as I could on my own and I can't. I don't even know what is the right number to ask for. I will add a copy of the mold report. The comment from the lab stating how "concerned" they were that children were living inside this property. The Lake County Health Department is fully aware of this issue. So is the City. Neither are concerned with what this does to a person, let alone children.

If you don't feel God is asking you to give, then please pray for us. This is the beginning for us as a family again and I need to provide for these guys as I once was able to on this same job/income. So it CAN be done. I WAS doing it, with God's help. I can do it again, we just need a little PUSH! If you are unable to give, please share this, please pray for us. This isn't half of our story. It's a picture. It's a snapshot of a change that needs to happen in Lake County! My children and I thank you for any support (and/or prayers) you are able to send us.

Damaris and Kids