Friends & neighbors, mutual aid from the community is desperately needed. I

have been working for several weeks with two ladies, Sandy and Stephanie, in different capacities doing what I refer to as "deep volunteer advocacy," wherein you strive to help the client and their respective case managers pull together the often disparate resources required by each unique situation.

With their permission, I am sharing a bit about their stories and how we came to know one another.

I was volunteering for Code Purple at ABCCM's Transformation Village, and night after night during the last freeze, these ladies came in. Over a few days, I saw Sandy's health, in particular, decline. She suffers from multiple acute and chronic health issues. Both ladies are in their 50s, which is not old, but significantly amplifies the impact of life on the street.

Many of us housed folks often don't realize the brutality of the movement required of even the most motivated and cooperative houseless person. If you are fortunate enough to have a bed in a shelter, you most often must vacate early in the morning and may not return until at least 4 PM. This circumstance requires endless walking throughout the day as you are shooed off everywhere you try to rest, attempt to make and keep health or service appointments, and seek out enough food to sustain yourself while carrying everything you own.

I have already received funds from BeLoved, Grace Covenant, and WellCare for the purposes of maintining this motel room. Now, we have to turn to the community to maintain while both ladies await their relative solutions.

Neither are in active addiction, and both desperately want to be housed. These are truly meaningful recipeints of aid, in my determination, due to very high liklihood of success. Going back on the street as they await housing would very likely be deadly.

Please chip in whatever you can so that we may secure four to five weeks of shelter. $1 and beyond is welcome. If you cannot contribute, please share!

If you'd like more information or details, please reach out! Thanks to everyone in advance; I know we can pull together and do this!