Last Monday, my family’s world got turned upside down with a single phone call.

Out of nowhere, the homeowner of the house we’ve rented for the past eight years told us that he was selling, and we had to move. No warning, no time to save, no time to plan.. Just gone, heading into the winter and the holidays.

Many of you know me as Ray from WrestleCopia, but before that I am a father of 8. Our oldest away in college, and 7 others, ages 17 to 3, still live at home with my wife & me. We’ve always taken pride in giving our kids what they need to thrive: food, clothing, stability. Our rent has never been late, our bills always paid. But this blindsided us completely.

In the past, the homeowner promised he’d give us plenty of notice if he ever sold the house, and that he’d never do it heading into winter. His exact words “I’d never want those babies to freeze”.

But last Monday, not only did he give us no time to prepare, he did so to ensure he collected one last month of rent from us, and now we’re being made to leave as we head into the winter Ohio weather.

His decision left us trapped, still paying rent to him until our move date, while also having to come up with a full deposit, first month’s rent, and a mid-month prorate on the new place. That’s thousands due all at once, on top of moving costs and utility bills. We’re doing everything we can, but it’s more than we can carry alone.

A good man told me last week, “Don’t let pride get in the way of taking care of your family.” Those words hit hard. It’s not easy asking for help, we’ve never had to, but I’m doing it for my kids, to keep their world steady when everything feels like it’s falling apart.

Between the stress and my ongoing heart condition, this past week has been overwhelming. I find myself doing something I thought I’d never do. But I know we’ll get through it with a little help.

We set our goal at $8,000 total, which will cover:

- $5,500 for first month’s rent & security deposit on the new home.

- Another $1,000 for a prorated cost of moving in mid month.

- $1,500+ for movers, gas, packing needs

In the past, I’ve always handled moves myself, but between my heart condition and the size of our family, we need help. Every dollar goes directly toward getting our family moved safely into our new home.

Every dollar, every share, every word of support helps us move closer to safety and stability.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for helping us through this.