My friend Chelsea Stump is in need of help right now. Currently she is facing a return to homelessness and needs to get enough funds to establish stable housing for at least 9 months in order to attend Lambda School for professional development through their data science program. Fundraising goals have been based on the maximum Federal Pell Grant for the 2019-2020 award year, which is $6,195 .
Sociocultural background as well as circumstantial instability and lack of medical care have historically stood in the way of applying for disability benefits, along with rarity of primary medical condition from which she suffers [Ehlers-Danlos syndrome]. Rather than continuing to fight upstream to achieve what is a marginal standard of survival that can be particularly limiting to agency and quality of life, Chelsea would prefer to find a path to independence that can take into account her strengths as well as her weaknesses. This means finding work that takes advantage of the technical capacities commonly associated with Asperger syndrome , and will be more likely to allow for a professional opportunity that suits someone with chronic pain and serious mobility limitations.
Chelsea has a genetic disease which makes her joints weak and hypermobile, as well as meaning that she heals slowly from injury, if at all. An extensive complex of subsequent secondary conditions accompany this disease, including dysautonomia, gastroparesis, osteoarthritis, postural orthostatic tachycardia, hypermobility, peripheral neuropathy / parasthesia, dysphagia, risk of dislocation/subluxations, sprains, aneurysm, organ rupture, aortic dissection, and cerebral hemorrhaging. The consequences of this condition have been drastically exacerbated by vehicular trauma sustained when an SUV hit her from the left while traveling by bicycle at the age of 19. She experienced substantial injury to the spine as well as head and neck, as she landed headfirst with no protective headgear. She is also diagnosed with autism-spectrum disorder, which has made finding work difficult in the past, yet also means she has exceptional aptitude for a number of technical domains. Past employment circumstances have been largely unsuccessful, the longest stint having lasted 7 months. While rehashing details is painful, recurring themes have been pressure to compromise integrity/safety of clients/customers/etc and limitations of physical endurance/stamina. She lives with the help of an owner-trained service animal called Buddy, for which she has encountered some housing discrimination on multiple occasions, irrespective of ADA and Fair Housing Act guidelines. (Private residential housing agencies such as many homeless shelters have the right to deny access to service animals; she has been denied housing opportunities twice this month based on service animal discrimination.)
For the last six months Chelsea has been an unpaid apprentice at a residential meditation center, which is coming to an end July 16th. This training emphasized mindfulness and leadership within a 10-20 person community, including a lot of explicit interpersonal skill development in a variety of modalities. She says that she "...came to more profoundly appreciate [her] unique gifts and abilities, as well as how to share them in a way that honors their value and welcomes connection with others." She also says she is especially humble about what success looks like, and maintains a deep devotion to cultivating strong cooperative relationships in work.
She was able to buy a car a year ago for $300 that has lasted 12,000 miles, but is now in need of repairs/inspection/registration/insurance or replacement, as managing a fulltime tech-based class schedule with uncertain housing circumstances necessitates the mobility and freedom provided by a reliable vehicle, especially because of Lambda School’s strict attendance requirements.
In the interest of transparency, gofundme charges 2.9%+ $0.30 per donation;
If you prefer another way to contribute, her paypal is [email redacted].
The goal total can be altered to reflect your contribution.
Non-monetary contributions to practical matters such as a laptop that can meet the requirements of Lambda School’s program , vehicle, and housing assistance is also very welcomed. Please contact her if you have a lead that may be helpful.
PERSONAL TESTIMONIALS
"She is a fantastic person with a crazy beautiful mind that for various reasons has had a pretty hard hand dealt to her... read her story, see if it speaks to you, and throw her twenty bucks (or $200)."
"Chelsea taught me how to live with humor, grace, and compassion in the face of a rare and often painful medical condition that challenges her to be creative on a daily basis. I am humbled and forever changed by her courage, her kindness, and her patience as she explained and RE-explained her reality to me and I slowly (painfully slowly) came out of my ignorance and misunderstanding of her experience. I feel lucky to call her a friend and to have spent time with Buddy, her service dog who made everyone's lives better in the fast-paced nonprofit start-up culture of a modern monastery. If you can contribute to Chelsea's cause I would be forever grateful."
"Chelsea is an incredible person. Being afflicted by many difficult psychological, physical, and emotional disorders, they have the unique skill of being able to explain those atypical challenges to the average Joe who is completely unaware of how hard it is to live as a disabled person. Chelsea brings a mixture of deep compassion, mental acuity, and optimism in the face of adversity. Her exuberant laughter and broad grins lift spirits and inspire hope. She's always happy to lend an ear to those going through a tough time.
With an aura that is part trickster and part saint, she walks against the grain of a society that cares little for those at the bottom. In doing so Chelsea challenges systems of oppression and shows care for the voiceless and unseen, and for all of creation."
"I've never met someone who has experienced the level of adversity she has, while also having an overwhelming love for other people and a strong pro-cooperation bent. She's lived life out of her car, in abject poverty, with debilitating chronic health issues, trauma, autism, etc. She grew up in the poor South where no one understood her or her needs, and doctors didn't recognize her condition. She's found ways to survive and manage it all, with an unusual level of optimism, determination, and passion for life. She reminds me of a lot of my other friends and the struggles they've been through—the combination of psychological / trauma issues with the complex health / disability issues combined with poverty and lack of support is definitely a worse combination than most I've seen however. At MAPLE she still manages to meditate for hours and hours with us, while sitting with a lot of physical pain. I find this impressive! She's also done lots of emotional processing here, and I feel good about the therapeutic skills she's taking away."
NOTES FROM CHELSEA:
I am so humbled to find my way to being able to articulate my needs so openly; it feels very raw and sensitive... yet rather than over-exposed, I feel like a skilled physician is removing a bandage or cast that I've had on for a long time.
If you know me and care about my prerogatives, and find yourself unable to contribute to this fundraising drive, please consider sharing with others who might have the ability, share the significance that I hold for you, or any of your experiences of me/with me. Your value system is as relevant as that of modern capitalism!