Hello, dear reader! My name is Michael, more commonly known as Tex, and I rather suddenly need to pay over $15,000 to the local court system - my aunt passed with a rather substantial amount of medical debt and the house I’m currently living in may be force-sold by her creditors within the next month. Curious as to how this situation unfolded? Please, do allow me to paint you a picture:

Throughout the pandemic I was living in Indiana, and in the summer of 2022 I came back to Ohio for an extended visit. It had been a few years since I’d seen my family in light of the whole world practically catching fire, and in particular my grandmother missed me dearly. She turned 90 years old that summer, and surrounded by her children and grandchildren at that particular birthday party, she was concerned as to what would happen to her house after she was gone. We discussed possibilities for a while, and it was mutually agreed that I would move into her house in the event that she passed…

And then, come late autumn her health began a steady decline, becoming much more rapid that winter. She died in January of 2023.

In April of 2023 my roommates and I moved into her house with that previous agreement in mind; stipulations of which included paying the taxes, utilities, and maintaining the property itself so that my relatives didn’t need to do so. Things were fine for the most part, though my uncles occasionally asked when I was going to outright buy the house so that they could get their shares of the value out of it… Not considering that the very beginning of my adulthood had been completely upended by a global, viral outbreak and that I did not have house-buying money just lying around.

Fast forward to May of 2025 - my aunt had been fighting aggressive liver cancer for a few years, and she finally succumbed to it despite ample medical intervention. She was always so willful and strong; easily one of the strongest women I’ve ever known, and to see her reduced to a husk of her former self was hard on everyone, especially her children… That struggle seemed to delay her eldest son when wrapping up her earthly affairs - in researching this emergent issue, each bit of legal paperwork was submitted at the last possible minute each time.

Eventually, in November of 2025, my roommates moved out and my boyfriend moved in. Despite us making more money together and being much happier over all, it’s been a bit of a tough time since then. We’re both frequently exposed the the public and we both got Covid in December, meaning a lot of missed work. January and February were spent financially recovering before car issues arose for both of us in March, meaning more missed work and our modest savings being depleted to cover expenses while they were in the shop. In April I ended up getting strep throat for the first time since elementary school, and in May we both got the flu… With my boyfriend experiencing a much harsher case whereas I mostly just had a sore throat and congestion.

In short, we’ve been kicked around a lot this year, and that’s all amidst the price of everything increasing because of the war in Iran and other external factors… We’ve been scraping by for the past few months, and last week we opened a letter addressed to our house, for my likewise deceased uncle, saying that a probate court hearing regarding the house I’m living in was imminent next week.

Let me rewind to St. Patrick’s Day of 2022: my aforementioned uncle died following forty-plus years of alcoholism slowly destroying his body. In his will, he transferred his fourth of my grandmother’s estate - to be divided equally between her children - to his widow, my aunt… But mind you, my grandmother still isn’t dead yet. Turns out, ownership of the house was transferred to her children long before she passed to avoid an even bigger legal hassle, only to create an even bigger one for my immediate family and I. I’ll spare you the details, but rest assured, it is a baffling quagmire of court cases and documentation. Even the four different lawyers we’ve spoken to have been confused by the prior proceedings, but they made it clear: I am going to need to buy out my late aunt’s one-fourth share of the house I have been living in, paying taxes and utilities on, and maintaining for the past three years and two months.

With these past months being as unkind to my boyfriend and I as they have been ala surprise expenses and sickness, I’m obviously in no position to be able to do that… And as such, my parents have offered to buy out my aunt’s share of the house so that her creditors are happy - or at least, so that our housing situation won’t be jeopardized further by her debt… But that would completely wipe out my parents’ savings, and I’d rather that not come to pass. My father is sixty-nine years old and my mother is going to be sixty-six soon - if anything should happen to them in the coming years, I wouldn’t want them to be completely lacking the financial resources to take care of themselves.

This is where I’d humbly ask for your assistance in this matter, dear reader. Below I’ve detailed donation goals and just how your generous funding will be utilized:

$15,522

This donation goal would get my family and I out of the danger zone. With it I’d either be able to buy out my late aunt’s interest in the house and get her creditors off of our backs, or pay back my dad that same amount of funds should it become immediately necessary.

$31,044

Buying out my aunt’s share would only serve as temporary reprieve from a much bigger burden, unfortunately. In recent years my two uncles have pressured both myself, my parents, and my cousins when it comes to buying the house outright so that they can get their shares of its value. For an extra $15,522, I would be able to buy one of my uncles’ shares in the house.

$46,566

With an additional $15,522, I’d be able to buy out my other uncle’s share in the house.

$62,088

For yet an additional $15,522, I’d be able to pay my dad his share of the house’s value. He has expressed previously that he’s happy to relinquish his share in its value for the sake of my boyfriend and I having a stable living situation, but I’d at least like to make an attempt to provide him with said funds. If he declines, I’d still at least pay him back a few thousand from helping me out with other, smaller financial emergencies over the years. The rest would be spent in securing the house’s deed/title, saved as an emergency fund, and/or put down on car loans.

$92,588

Speaking of car loans… Stretch goal one would see my boyfriend freed of his exorbitant car loan, allowing him to focus much more time and effort on his passions, particularly music and game development. He has been stuck in one since January 2024 with a particularly nasty interest rate working against him. He’s already tried to refinance it once to no avail since the car is now worth less than the value of the loan due to depreciation.

$126,500

This final chunk of about $34,000 would let me pay off my own car loan. It’s financed at a much more reasonable interest rate, but the loan itself is less than a year old and is still estimated to accumulate an additional $10k in interest within the next five years. It’s a hell of a long shot, but these final funds would liberate me from my own small mountain of debt, allowing me to invest much more of my time and energy into my own passions, namely streaming, voice acting, and vocalist pursuits.

Anybody that knows me is well aware that I’m much more inclined to help others than ask for help, myself… The easing of these various burdens would enable me to pay all of this kindness forward in the future. I feel it is my very purpose in this life to have a positive impact however and wherever I realistically can, and while I believe my voice is my best asset in fulfilling that purpose… Being ready to throw some money to those in need of extra funds would go a long way, too.

That all said, dear reader, thank you immensely for your consideration, generosity, and time. For one final request, I’d ask that you please share this forward with anybody who may sympathize with our story - whether it’s those that have likewise dealt with family deaths bringing out folks’ true colors or fellow creators willing to help one another out.