Donation protected
My friend Cameron is, without question, one of the best people I've ever met. The man is kind, caring, and generous to a fault. Time and time again, I've seen him go out of his way to take care of other people who needed it without thought for himself. Sure, everyone thinks their friends are the best, but in Cameron's case? It's true. He's the sort of guy who:
- Took in two of his nephews when he was in his early 20s so that they wouldn't have to go through the foster care system like he did, basically becoming a single dad when he was still just a kid himself.
- Helped his mother through a recurrence of issues with mental health and addiction, driving almost three hundred miles to take her to detox, take care of her house, and make sure she had basics like groceries when she got back.
- Moved a friend out of her abusive situation, including physically protecting her when the man turned violent.
- Got emergency care and support for a panicking apartment neighbor when her boyfriend OD'd.
- Comforted me through many late nights during depressive episodes or fits of anxiety, whether it meant talking me through a round of awful feelings or just trying to make me laugh.
This time, Cameron's the one who needs help. Over the last few months, he's been hit by one unexpected expense after another, including:
- medical expenses for his nephew who needed treatment in another city where they had to stay in a hotel for several nights.
- lost wages from time away to take care of his mom.
- problems with his car.
- one of their family cats getting sick and racking up bills at the vet.
- his HVAC system sensors breaking so that they're kicking out hot air instead of cold in the middle of July.
Just one of them wouldn't have been the sort of thing that should put his family in crisis, but with all of them hitting back to back, the hole he's in just keeps getting deeper.
Over the past few months, he's picked up extra shifts, put in applications for a second job, and taken side-gigs like driving and moving furniture for extra pay on his days off. He's cut his budget to the bone and even started rationing some of his own medication to try and save money. But it hasn't been enough and, after coming down with a nasty case of COVID-19 that landed him in the ER, he hasn't been able to work at all for more than a week. That's one more bill that's going to get added to the pile and several more days of lost wages at the worst possible time. He's resorted to paying for basic expenses on his credit card and taking out a payday loan to cover his rent, but with predatory interest rates, that debt is only going to get worse.
Watching him go through this hurts my heart. We've all had a point where life has knocked us down and we needed a hand back up. Cameron's been that helping hand for lots of people. This is a chance to return some of the good he's given to others. If you've got even $20 to spare, it'll help him and his family!
Here's how the money will be used:
- $880 CAD/$643 USD/€547 to cover his payday loan for July rent
- $1,033 CAD/$755 USD/€470 for his upcoming August rent
- $270 CAD/$197 USD/€168 to cover groceries for the next two weeks
- $664 CAD/$485 USD/€413 for his car repair
- $100 CAD/$73 USD/€62 for his medication
- $2,557 CAD/$1,868 USD/€1589 to pay down the outstanding balance on his credit card
- $1,316 CAD/$961 USD/€818 to cover his cat's medical bill
- $154 CAD/$113 USD/€96 for an overdue bill
- $685 CAD/$500 USD/€426 to restart his emergency savings account
TOTAL: $7,659 CAD/$5,593 USD/€4,759
The breakdowns and total are approximate due to the daily change in currency conversion rates. Anything above the initial goal will be put towards other August monthly bills and adding to his emergency savings.
If you can't donate, please take a second to share this with your friends and family. Every little bit can make a difference!
Organizer and beneficiary
Melanie Grenier
Organizer
Nanaimo, BC
Cameron F
Beneficiary