Hello friends, family, yogis and yet-to-be friends.
With everything that is going on in the world I’m reaching out for a helping hand.
I am a yoga teacher from South Africa who currently lives in Edinburgh. Through my late grandfather I was very lucky to be given a 5 year UK ancestry visa which expires in July this year. Then, in order to stay in the UK, I am able to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain however this is a very expensive option and this is where I’m asking for your help.
Four and a half years ago I moved to Edinburgh to help with a yoga business startup with the opportunity to gain 10% equity in the business. Although we had great success I yearned for the chance to be my own boss and so at the beginning of last year I decided to become a self-employed yoga teacher. This choice was one of the most rewarding decisions I have ever made; working for myself and attempting to create my own business around values and ethics that are important to me.
However, as a self-employed person, this means that I only get paid when I work. A few months into my new career path I had the rather distressing news of my mother passing. With such a challenging loss I took a few months off work and a reduced teaching schedule in order to grieve and focus on my own mental health. I took quite a large financial hit during this time. It has only been since the beginning of this year that I have felt the clouds of grief clearing and I already had three fully-booked luxury yoga retreats in place during the next few months which would contribute financially to my permanent residency application fees.
But now, while being self-employed during the COVID-19 pandemic, I have lost the opportunity to teach my next three yoga retreats and all the earnings that were to come with those. I am now unable to save the £3,300 required to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK. Without these funds I will be forced to return to South Africa in July when my visa expires.
I believe we all must give in order to receive so my plan is to offer free online content including one week of free live-streaming yoga classes via my social media platforms in return for donations which can be made to this GoFundMe account. There will also be heaps of educational online content to help you guys live well during these hard times. Even if you're not interested in yoga I'm inviting any close friends, family or even students of mine to donate in order to help fund my application to stay in the UK.
This is not a sympathy story as I couldn't be happier to be doing what I'm doing; living a fulfilling life sharing my most beneficial practices which help me navigate through life. I'm just a yoga teacher asking for a bit of financial help so I can continue to teach in the UK. I will be eternally grateful for any support received.
With everything that is going on in the world I’m reaching out for a helping hand.
I am a yoga teacher from South Africa who currently lives in Edinburgh. Through my late grandfather I was very lucky to be given a 5 year UK ancestry visa which expires in July this year. Then, in order to stay in the UK, I am able to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain however this is a very expensive option and this is where I’m asking for your help.
Four and a half years ago I moved to Edinburgh to help with a yoga business startup with the opportunity to gain 10% equity in the business. Although we had great success I yearned for the chance to be my own boss and so at the beginning of last year I decided to become a self-employed yoga teacher. This choice was one of the most rewarding decisions I have ever made; working for myself and attempting to create my own business around values and ethics that are important to me.
However, as a self-employed person, this means that I only get paid when I work. A few months into my new career path I had the rather distressing news of my mother passing. With such a challenging loss I took a few months off work and a reduced teaching schedule in order to grieve and focus on my own mental health. I took quite a large financial hit during this time. It has only been since the beginning of this year that I have felt the clouds of grief clearing and I already had three fully-booked luxury yoga retreats in place during the next few months which would contribute financially to my permanent residency application fees.
But now, while being self-employed during the COVID-19 pandemic, I have lost the opportunity to teach my next three yoga retreats and all the earnings that were to come with those. I am now unable to save the £3,300 required to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK. Without these funds I will be forced to return to South Africa in July when my visa expires.
I believe we all must give in order to receive so my plan is to offer free online content including one week of free live-streaming yoga classes via my social media platforms in return for donations which can be made to this GoFundMe account. There will also be heaps of educational online content to help you guys live well during these hard times. Even if you're not interested in yoga I'm inviting any close friends, family or even students of mine to donate in order to help fund my application to stay in the UK.
This is not a sympathy story as I couldn't be happier to be doing what I'm doing; living a fulfilling life sharing my most beneficial practices which help me navigate through life. I'm just a yoga teacher asking for a bit of financial help so I can continue to teach in the UK. I will be eternally grateful for any support received.
Organizer
Jacob Mellish
Organizer