Help a Disabled Vet Keep Independent Investigations Alive

I’m The Vault Archivist, a disabled U.S. veteran living on Social Security.

I run The Vault Investigates, an independent investigative journalism project that follows one question: how does poverty get turned into someone else’s business model? I work on long, document‑heavy investigations about how institutions, NGOs, politics, and media systems monetize poverty in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines.

For the last few years, I’ve been financing this project out of what’s left of my monthly Social Security check.

I live with multiple chronic conditions, including osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, degenerative disc disease, and OCD. That combination makes regular full‑time work difficult and painful. Investigative research — reading records, building timelines, and writing — is one of the few ways I can still contribute at a high level without destroying what’s left of my body. But the tools and infrastructure this work requires are not free.

There are no sponsors, no political parties, and no institutions funding The Vault Investigates. It’s just me, a laptop, and readers who care about accountability.

Why I’m asking for help

I’m raising $6,500 to cover roughly a year of basic operating costs so that I can keep this work going without having to choose between paying for tools and paying for basic living expenses.

Your support will help cover:

Research and accessibility tools – AI research assistants, transcription, video tools, and other software that help me process large volumes of documents and work around physical limitations.

Hosting, domains, and secure backups – keeping The Vault Investigates archive online and safe so case files, timelines, and evidence don’t disappear.

Records and document fees – court filings, corporate records, and other public documents needed to follow the money.

Basic ergonomic and accessibility needs – supportive seating and input devices that directly affect whether I can keep working through chronic pain.

I’m not asking for a lifestyle upgrade. I’m asking for the minimum needed to keep an independent investigative project alive on top of a fixed disability income.

What The Vault Investigates does

The Vault Investigates focuses on:

How poverty is monetized by agencies, NGOs, and political actors

How “charity” and “content” turn real suffering into marketing campaigns

How cultural moments — including music and sports — get weaponized while poor communities stay poor

Most of the in‑depth reporting stays free for Filipinos, Puerto Ricans, and working‑class readers, because the people most affected by these systems are usually the ones asked to pay for access. Your support means they don’t have to.

Recent work includes a multi‑part “Seeds of Fire” series on how a Super Bowl halftime show, culture‑war politics, and media spin turned into a business model — and who profits when people are too distracted by outrage to follow the money.

How the funds will be used

All funds from this GoFundMe will go toward:

Paying monthly subscriptions for research, editing, and accessibility tools

Covering hosting, domains, and storage for The Vault archive

Paying necessary records and document fees tied to active investigations

Covering a small portion of accessibility‑related costs that directly impact my ability to keep working

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I will post updates here so donors can see:

Which investigations are live

Which major expenses this fundraiser has covered (for example: “Paid for a year of [tool],” “Covered court fees for Case X”)

How you can help

If you’re able, you can help in three ways:

Donate any amount — even a small gift helps cover a day of tools or hosting.

Share this fundraiser with friends, fellow veterans, disability communities, and anyone who cares about independent journalism.

If you can’t give financially, consider subscribing to The Vault Investigates and sharing the reporting so it reaches people who can.

Thank you for helping a disabled vet keep doing the one thing I can still do well: dig through the paper trail, connect the dots, and publish the receipts so our communities can see how power really works.