Help Barbara, Dawn and Grace through homelessness.

My name is Barbara Hughes and my family and I are currently homeless. My sister Dawn and her daughter Grace and I have been living in a hotel, and things are becoming more and more difficult.

I am retired from United Airlines, and my sister is currently unemployed, having lost her job in January. This was the first job she had after battling back from cancer, and losing this job has been very difficult for her. Her daughter, Grace, is finishing her final year as a grad student at Monmouth University and is scheduled to graduate in May of 2026 with a Master's in School Counseling.

We have tried everything to rent a home and rebuild our lives, and there always seems to be one door after another closed on us. It has been a difficult five years for us, and as I said, we have tried everything. We are looking for two things - one being able to get into a 2-bedroom apartment or single-family home with rent under $3000. A security deposit is also a problem, but right now our biggest problem is keeping up with the hotel bills. We have bounced from one hotel to another trying to stay ahead, but it seems that we have now hit the end of what we have available.

Our friends have been wonderful to us, and we appreciate all that they have done for us, but we are once again forced to turn to others for help. This is beyond embarrassing. Being on a fixed income and only being paid once a month is so difficult. I was always so careful with money, and now at the age of 76, I am struggling on a daily basis.

Dawn is currently looking for a job but is not having any luck. Unemployment helps, but not nearly enough to cover the expenses of a hotel.

I know that there are so many people who have it worse than us, and it breaks my heart to be asking for any type of help, but I see no other choice.

Any help that you can give, no matter how small, would be greatly appreciated. If anyone knows of someone in Monmouth County or Northern Ocean County that is renting a home, please keep us in mind. I thank you very much for taking the time to read our story, and please keep us in your prayers.