Help my dad. They stole everything from him.

This is my dad. I love him more than anything. He’s a good man. That’s the problem.

My father wanted to be an actor. He took a break from acting for awhile to go to Vietnam. Luckily, he came back and decided he’d try to chase his dream again. Then one day, I was born. And after that, my little brother. He knew that he needed to provide a home for us and support. So he stopped acting and got a job as a district manager for a newspaper. That’s a fancy title for someone who coordinates the people in the early morning that deliver all the newspaper to people the and businesses that get them. Most of the time, people wouldn’t show up or would take a day off. So he had to do their jobs for them.

And that was the job he did for my whole life. He got up at 1:30 in the morning and worked until 11:30am. A 10 hour shift, in the middle of the night, EVERY night, 7 days a week with no days off and very little vacation time. And he did this job for just over 30 years. It was not a high paying job, but it was enough that we were comfortable and didn’t have to worry about our next meal.

He never complained. And whenever people needed anything, he was there for them. One time, some newspaper carriers lost their home. He barely knew them, but he took in. A wife, a father and two kids. He shared his home with them for a year. They, of course, never said “thank you,” and, in fact, left one day out of the blue, and took a number of his things with them.

A few years later, he took in someone else who lost his home. What was supposed to be a week or two, turned into a year and a half. Although the man was appreciative and helped as he could, it took a toll on my fathers meager income.

My father is not rich. He is retired now and lives on the inhumanly small pension he gets from his many back-breaking years at the newspaper and social security. Because he is a veteran, he at least gets medical help from the VA Hospital.

He had to move to Las Vegas last year, farther away from my brother and I, because he couldn’t afford to live in California. He would like to drive for Uber, but they have made it clear that he is “too old.” Nonetheless, he finds a way each month to drive for less popular companies so that he can make ends meet. Driving jobs are his only option, because the years of paper delivery have left his knees, hip and feet in rough condition. He still doesn’t complain. He still works 7 days a week. He has to.

I help him as much as I can, as often as I can. It’s not always easy, but we make it happen.

Yesterday, my father got an email. It said that his anti-virus software payment was going to be deducted from his checking account. My father is an exceptionally smart and well-read man…but he is computer-stupid. He didn’t see the problem when he called the phone number on the email and they told him they would refund him the amount. He believed them when they said they “accidentally refunded him too much” and that he needed to pay them back. He believed they were trying to help him “avoid excessive taxes” by not refunding them through his bank and by paying it in gift cards. He believed he was being honest and doing the right thing.

My father is a good man. And that’s the problem.

They took all of his savings. I know. It’s sad that $4,000 is all he had after everything he’s given up and given out in his life.

He has always given everything and asked for nothing in return. That’s why I’m asking for him.

Please consider helping this good, kind, and computer-stupid man. I’m not asking for a windfall. I’m don’t thin I’m even asking for a lot in the scheme of things.

I just want to get him back to the level playing field he was at before those pieces of human garbage played him for a fool and stole everything he had.