Hello,

My name is Jorge Negron. Up until a few days ago, I worked as a Program Director at a major poverty-fighting NYC non-profit organization, one that prides itself on promoting choice, dignity, health, and self-sufficiency. After 8 years of dedication and several promotions since I started in 2017, my career and my financial stability were upended in a single email.

It happened just after I landed, returning home from a vacation abroad. A few minutes after switching my phone on from airplane mode, I suddenly found myself unemployed. The decision was swift and final, and the reason? Job abandonment.

That's it. The swiftness of the decision, combined with an accusation of job abandonment, was such a shock that it didn't really register until the following day, when I found myself in the shower laughing and crying at the sheer absurdity of it all.

How could a company so devoted to choice suddenly make a unilateral decision to cut ties without a single personal phone call or email?

How could an organization so focused on dignity deny me the ability to even apply for unemployment benefits, which are my right?

How could a workplace that claims to value health disregard my recent FMLA leave, never reaching out to see if I was well (or alive) before moving forward with my termination?

And how, with their commitment to self-sufficiency, could they suddenly put me in a position where I'm stripped of the very means to support myself and my cat, Neptune?

To top it all off, the company-connected retirement account that I took out a $10,000 loan from to pay off personal credit card debt is now requiring me to pay off the loan in one single installment or face severe penalties.

When it rains, it pours, right?

It's okay.

I'm okay.

It will be okay.

If you know anything about me, you would know that I loved what I did. I truly enjoyed my job, and not many people can say that. I take pride in claiming that I did. I dedicated more time and energy to my work than I did to my friendships and relationships, something that I'm less proud of. Despite the long hours, stress, and even some hair loss, I never held back; I always gave my all.

I'm not here to ask you to dwell on the why, although it's an important question, but to ask for your support to help me navigate this extremely challenging situation I now find myself in. I don't have much in my savings, less than $500, which is why I decided to start this GoFundMe. Any funds raised will go towards paying off the loan and providing me with a financial safety net to ensure I can make ends meet while I begin the search for a new job. Your contribution will help me regain my footing and continue moving forward.

Thank you for your time, your support, and your belief in my ability to get through this.

Love always,

Jorge.