Hello friends, family, and others,

On Saturday, October 5th, I got a phone call that my dad's house was on fire and that there was an explosion inside. The cause is still unknown. Unfortunately, my father passed during the fire, and while I'm dealing with that, I want to make this GoFundMe page for my "uncle" Paul.

Paul became my dad's housemate shortly after I decided to change my life and go to rehab in Santa Cruz around 2017. My story doesn't seem to be important here, so I will cut to the point. Paul did for me what I couldn't do for my father. I needed to focus on recovery, and Paul was there when my dad became more sick and unable to tend to himself. He was not an in-home care professional; it wasn't his job, he wasn't getting paid. He just did it. Up until the very last day my father was alive. And I could spend my entire life trying to repay him, and it would never be enough. He drove him to his appointments, cooked him dinner, cleaned his room, helped him pay his bills, and only my close friends and family will understand this... And I say it with love... he put up with his shit.

My dad was 85, and his mental health and physical health were in major decline. He would project his emotions and feelings towards Paul, who took everything in stride. Paul kept in touch with me, always letting me know the condition of my father, his mental state, his appointments, and he would get to vent to me about my father's behavior because no one else would understand besides me.

My plan was to always help Paul with whatever I could when my dad passed away. The plan was to have him still living in the house, if he wanted to, without rent, and to rent out the other bedrooms, and he would watch over until he wasn't able to anymore. I just wanted him to have a roof over his head and some money in his pocket. Unfortunately, this won't be the case since the house is beyond repairs from the fire. He lost everything he had in the fire.

Paul is the only one left in his family. He's also in his 70s and is looking at a long road of recovery and a 3-5 month hospital stay in the burn unit at UC Davis. He was 30% burned from the fire, and at the moment, he's unable to speak from smoke inhalation, and he has no idea I'm doing this. I want to raise money for Paul when he is able to be released from the hospital. I want him to be able to find a place to live where he can live his life in peace. I want him to have clothes and food and a space he can feel safe and he can have a good start. I have no idea what it is going to look like for him when he gets out. Unfortunately, like many of us, I believe he lived paycheck to paycheck from S.S.I., and I don't think he has much of anything left besides the cash in his wallet. If anyone can help me get this money together for Paul, I would be so greatly appreciative. It's the absolute least I could do for this earth angel of a human being.

Thank you all for your love and support as I walk through this tragic time of my life. And please pray for Paul and his recovery. I imagine he will not only walk out with physical scars but mental as well from this traumatic experience.

I just want peace for Paul-

Amber.