Help a Dedicated Community Member Overcome Debt

When I came to San Francisco 35 years ago at the age of 25, I thought I would have it all. After a failed relationship, I moved here and chose to stay because I had gotten a puppy, and taking him back to Hawaii with me would’ve meant putting him in quarantine for six months, and I was not prepared to do that. Over the years, I DJed, worked in clubs as a bartender/manager, restaurants, catering, and what I truly love doing, driving.

I’ve spent 31 of my past 35 years (almost 36) as an activist and fundraiser for our community. Everyone knows my struggles with drugs and alcohol, but I just celebrated 10 years clean and sober this past August. I’m grateful for all the love, appreciation, and trust I have received from all of you. When Covid hit, it hit hard, and I had to spend most of my savings in that first year because business was scarce driving for Lyft, and the DJing stopped for the next three years into the pandemic. When I got Covid in 2021, it hit hard, and I wasn’t able to work at all for 15 days. I did a fundraiser then, and you all helped out.

If I don’t work, I don’t make money, and the remainder of my savings got spent.

I find myself at another crossroads and got myself into some serious debt. I’m working with a debt relief company on half of my credit cards and recently had my credit limit reduced significantly on my other cards. I’m a month and a half behind on my rent technically, although it is paid up via my BILT credit card that I use just for that. I would really like to get caught up and hopeful that you might be able to help out once again. It’s always painful to ask for help knowing that all of this is my fault for the path I chose, but that’s the only one I knew, and here I am. Any help would be greatly appreciated, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.