Help the Overalls start over

My name is Melissa Overall. I've always been a giver, never wanting to ask for help. Fiercely independent, I've even been called stubborn more than once when declining assistance from others. But now, circumstances have compounded to a point where I give up - I need to reach out and ask for help.

On Thursday August 3rd, a fierce storm blew through the area, knocking a large oak tree into our mobile home. We were home at the time, but miraculously there were no major injuries, including amongst our cats. The house is a total loss, and we have no homeowners insurance. I was awake for 38 hours those first days. I spent that time on the internet, searching and weighing our options. We are cash poor - my husband Tom has always given away any extra money he didn't use for his needs - so anything we did would have to be on my credit, which I have been working on building for several years. On Friday August 4, we looked at a great little house nearby that I had found online overnight. On Monday August 7, I was approved for a home loan, and we made an offer on the house. On Wednesday August 9, we were notified that the seller had sold the house to someone else who had offered the same amount, but in cash. I continued my home search. On Saturday August 12, we toured a home that was for sale about an hour away. We loved it - perfect for our needs. It was a bit more expensive than the first house, but it was larger and had more yard. The three of us could settle there comfortably with our cats. On Friday August 18, while I was at work, Tom delivered the check that secured our contract on the new house.

Sunday afternoon August 20, I got a call on my phone while I was at work in 9-1-1 dispatch. Tom had lost consciousness behind the wheel in a parking lot, and was rushed to the hospital. They were unable to revive him; he was gone before I could get there. He was 85.

Tom had no life insurance because he had never planned on remarrying. Then I came along. By the time we were married just shy of 25 years ago, due to his age, the rates would be so high as to be unaffordable. He has no savings; as I mentioned before, he has always used any extra money he had to help others in need.

I am humbly asking for help with the sudden expenditures. It will cost $3,500 to remove the tree from the mobile home, which will be necessary because we will have to remove the mobile home from the lot we are renting. We must continue to pay rent until the lot is cleared. I had to buy a generator, extension cords, and fans for us; and kennel cages, bowls, and potty pads for our colony of rescue cats. Daily expenses have been running around $100 for fuel for the generator, eating out two meals a day each, and gas for our vehicles. I have already spent somewhere around $5,000 since August the 3rd, and we still have to remove the tree, continue fueling the generator, and now pay Tom's final expenses. He wanted a simple burial, but it will still cost around $6,000, and that's if the VA approves his burial in the National Cemetery. If not, we will have to find a place to buy a plot and headstone, which will add to the cost. Tom's son, who lives with us, and I are going to go forward with the purchase of the house, because we cannot continue to live in a mobile home that's been sliced in half by a tree. Down payment on the new house is estimated to be between $7,000 and $8,000.

[Update just before posting: There was a small life insurance policy I was unaware of that will help reimburse most of the funeral costs, but the home loan term has changed, which has increased the down payment on the house, so it's pretty much a wash.]

Any little bit you can contribute would be immensely helpful, even if it's just $20 for a day's worth of fuel for the generator, or $5 for a couple Gatorades to keep us hydrated in this heat. If we surpass the goal, any extra donations will be used for moving expenses so my stepson, the cats, and I can start over. Anything above and beyond that will be donated to an animal charity in Tom's memory. Thank you for taking the time to read my story, and thank you in advance for your help.