On Thursday February 15th, my beloved uncle Sylvain passed on into the spirit realm after a long and difficult battle with liver cancer, leaving behind his wife Yvette, my mom, 2 sisters and 3 brothers.

As a result of this, my auntie Yvette is now on her own, very isolated and with little support around her so I’m hoping to raise funds to help alleviate the stresses of living in poverty. Before my uncle passed, they were already struggling to get by and now that she is on her own, she is on the verge of bankruptcy. She quit working three years ago to take care of my uncle full-time who became physically disabled from being sick and, as some of you might know, disabled people aren’t eligible to receive disability payments while living with their spouse, which has left them barely able to get by. Not to mention that she has health issues of her own which have become worse in the last year, making it impossible for her to work.

Im hoping to raise money for her to ensure that she has enough funds to cover rent and bills for the next little bit, like that she can grieve and not stress so much about having her basic needs met. I’m also hoping to raise a bit of extra funds to help her get a cheap car to do basic errands like grocery shop, pick up medications from the pharmacy, go to doctors appointments, etc. She’s very isolated living on the island and only has 2 people that are sometimes able to help her with rides, but these friends of hers have very busy lives of their own so it’s not always possible to receive help when needed.

More than anything she misses having a sense of independence and being able to get out of the house, which I know is something that will be very important for her to be able to do while she grieves so that she’s not always stuck at home.

For anyone interested in reading further, I want to share a bit about my uncle and auntie, in hopes that people may understand how important this is to me and my family. All details below are shared with consent.

To say that Sylvain was an extraordinary person would be an understatement. Although his time on earth with us felt cut short, he lived a very interesting life with a wide array of experiences that shaped him into being the wise and kind man I always knew him as.

Despite making the best of it when he could, Sylvain’s life wasn’t always easy. In his younger years he struggled with addiction and homelessness in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, having faced multiple close calls with death during that time. After years of fighting this battle and wanting to improve the state of his mental & physical health, with great strength and determination he was eventually able to quit using.

Anyone who’s loved someone who has dealt with addiction knows how incredibly difficult it can be and that the sheer strength required to move through this disease is indescribable. Not to mention the stigma and harsh judgment that people face in this fight only makes it worse.

When my uncle was 7 months sober, a friend of his connected him with Yvette who, At the time, was struggling with addiction herself. After a bit of back and forth, he felt conflicted about his relationship with her as he was determined to refrain from using and his supports in recovery warned him against dating anyone for the first year, especially someone who was still in active addiction.

But, the heart wants what it wants, and at that point they had already fallen madly in love with each other. Thankfully, by the grace and support of my uncle, Yvette was able to quit using shortly after they got together and they have both remained free of hard drugs ever since.

I wanted to share this bit about their story because many people I love have gone through this battle themselves and I believe it’s very important to advocate for and humanize people who struggle with addiction. I also want people to understand just how big of a loss this is for my auntie. My uncle was the love of her life, they helped and understood each other in ways most people couldn’t, given their shared lived experiences.

I know these are tough times for a lot of people and that not everyone might be able to donate. Please know that any amount helps.
And if you’re unable to contribute financially, sharing this within you networks is also a great way to help this fundraiser gain more traction and a wider reach.

Thank you in advance for your kindness & generosity.