Hi, my name is Luke and I'm fundraising to help two friends (and their pets) who have been rendered homeless by the January 22nd, 2023 fire on Hayes Street at Divisadero in San Francisco.

In the early AM hours of 1/22/23, a fire started at 1312 Hayes Street and swiftly spread through the building, rendering all four apartments in the house unliveable, and also affecting the home next door. Tenants escaped with only the clothes on their back, and were not allowed back into the building to salvage any belongings that may have survived. The following night, the property was then BURGLED, with thieves breaking into the house the landlord had failed to secure, and stealing everything of value that had not been destroyed by the fire.

Kamio is a disabled artist who has lived in the house for almost 30 years, and she's lost everything she owned in the fire and ensuing burglary. She is not able to hold a job due to her condition after a stroke, and the home she lived in was her only option, with no outside income available. She escaped with only the dress she was wearing, her phone and laptop, and her big orange cat, Banksy.

Caitlyn is a trans woman and VR artist who also first moved into the apartment almost 30 years ago, and recently moved back in after living away for a few years. Caitlyn also lost everything she had only just moved back with, escaping with what she could carry, and her dog, Chester. Her cat, Izzy, is still missing after running away from the fire.

Any funds raised will be going directly to Kamio and Caitlyn to help them start to rebuild their lives and pay for clothing, household goods, and a place to live until the apartment can be repaired by the landlord. It is not at all clear how long that could take, if it will happen at all (sometimes landlords leave burned buildings derelict for years rather than repairing them so that tenants can return.)

They've lost everything to a fire and ensuing burglary of the damaged apartment. Hopefully we can help them.

More news on this fire can be found at:

https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/san-francisco-firefighter-injured-25-displaced-in-hayes-street-house-fire/