Help Paul Stay Housed!

Dear friends,

My name is Paul, and I need help to stay housed. If you've ever visited the Mar Vista Post Office, you probably recognize me and know my name. I spend a lot of time chatting with neighbors there, sweeping the sidewalk and helping the community.

Several years ago, I was bitten by a brown recluse spider. I spent two months in the hospital fighting the infection and lost everything, including my home and my eye. Thankfully, I still had my partner April and our beloved dog Scrappy, but we had no money and nowhere to go. So we moved into our truck and started living on the street next to the Post Office.

For five years, I panhandled and recycled to earn enough money to live. Caseworkers at homeless service providers LAHSA and Saint Joseph's Center said that as a senior with a disability, I was at the top of their list for housing. But their only offer was to live somewhere separated from my partner and our dog--something I couldn't bear to accept.

But the Mar Vista community had my back and scraped together enough money for a down payment and the first month's rent on a $1,300 apartment. Incredibly, we were housed again, thanks to the support of our neighbors. Despite playing no role in this outcome, LAHSA took credit for it (counting us as one of their housing successes) and removed us from the list of people eligible for housing.

With only $200 in monthly income from GR, I continued panhandling and recycling to make ends meet. We struggled more when COVID set in, as people stopped going out in public and didn't want to hire us to clean houses. 2022 has been very rough. Our truck was stolen, I suffered a blood clot in my leg that made it difficult for me to get around, and April had a terrible fall. Of course, we don't have insurance to cover all our medical costs and can no longer drive to odd jobs without a vehicle.

We are in dire need of funding and support to help us through this rough patch. We are humbly asking for $2,000 to help with rent, medication, and to start saving for a vehicle. Every bit helps. Thank you so very much.