My name is Amanda Brown, and this Christmas was supposed to be the first moment of peace my family has had in two years.

After surviving the collapse of our home, being abandoned by a contractor who walked away with $85,000, and living with my four children crowded into a single room, I finally found a safe house... a place where my family could breathe again. A place where healing could begin.

I wrapped my entire hope around giving them that moment on Christmas morning.

But because my new job is technically considered “self-employment,” the lender bailed — and now our closing is slipping away. So is the home my children desperately need.

Our Story

The Collapse That Changed Everything

Two years ago, we hired a licensed contractor to build an addition onto my parents' existing home — space we desperately needed after choosing to live with my aging parents so we could support each other.

Instead, we got catastrophe.

In October 2024, the foundation began failing. Granite stone fell from the walls. Load-bearing supports separated. The entire structure began collapsing.

This wasn’t “settling.”

This wasn’t cosmetic.

It was catastrophic failure.

The contractor responsible took $85,000 of unused funds, not just my funds... funds my parents put forth after refinancing their home to finance the addition, abandoned the project, and then filed for bankruptcy to walk away from the damage they caused. They didn’t just leave us with a construction nightmare — they left us in danger.

Five People. One Room. Two Years.

Since the collapse, my four children and I have been living in a single room inside the shell of what used to be our home.

My kids’ twin beds nearly touch, shoulder-to-shoulder. I sleep on a 30" foam mattress between the stairs and the attic eave.

We’ve lived like this for two years, trying to survive a situation no family should ever endure.

We paid nearly $5,000 out of pocket for structural engineers just to make sure the house wouldn’t completely fail. I hired a lawyer with the last of what I had. We tried everything. We got nothing back.

The Stress Took My Health — I Had a Stroke

In June, in the middle of fighting to keep my family safe, I suffered a stroke... caused by stress, exhaustion, and carrying every burden alone.

The stroke forced me to be realistic about the sustainability of my job... I quit... and I rebuilt again. I started my own fire protection design consulting business to keep supporting my family. I worked. I recovered. I kept going — because that’s what mothers do.

Even My Kids Tried to Save Us

My 12-year-old son Nixon started mowing lawns. He made flyers, knocked on doors, and offered to redo yards for free if people didn’t like his work.

My 9-year-old daughter Lincoln brought me her savings — and wrote a letter to the bank — because she saw me breaking and wanted to help.

My son Carter set up a garage sale and tried to sell his Pokémon cards.

They tried to lift a burden that never should’ve touched their shoulders.

Finally — Hope

After two years packed into one room, I cashed out my 401k, found a real estate agent, and we found a safe, solid home — a place where my children could finally breathe again.

I placed the SOLD sticker on the sign.

For the first time in years, I felt hope.

My plan was to wrap the front door in Christmas paper and bring my kids there on Christmas morning.

After everything we've survived, that was going to be our moment.

And Then — We Hit Another Wall

Because my work is classified as “self-employment,” the lender may require a higher down payment.

The amount needed is now more than I can cover alone.

Our December 17th closing is slipping away.

From My Journal

I’ve been holding a boulder on my chest for two straight years, pretending it was manageable because I didn’t have the luxury of falling apart. I’ve been surviving, not living.

My “cupboard under the stairs.” All of us piled into one room. My parents’ dream shattered. My own dream ripped out of my hands by people who didn’t care about the wreckage they left behind.

This wasn’t just a bad construction job or a poor choice in contractors — it was trauma. It was betrayal. It was the unraveling of a future I had already promised my children.

We were supposed to move into the addition last Christmas. Instead, we’ve been surviving in a single room, squeezed together inside the shell of what used to be our dream.

Tonight, I cried. Not out of weakness — but because after years of holding everything together, something inside me finally let go.

I didn’t rebuild the same dream. I built a new path — one I carved when I had every reason to give up.

I bought a house. A clean, solid, beautiful house. And on Christmas morning, when I walk my children up to that gift-wrapped front door with the bow… the healing will begin.

What We Need

I’m asking for help with one thing only: the amount I am short to close on this house with this builder, who is offering financial incentives to close by the end of the year... I need to secure this home.

I’m asking for help with one thing only:

The amount I am short to close on this home.

With what I have from my 401(k), I am short $8,293.00 to secure the loan.

Goal: $9,000.00

(This covers GoFundMe’s platform and transaction fees.)

Every single dollar will go directly toward closing costs so we can finally move out of the single room we’ve lived in for two years.

I’m not asking for pity.

I’m asking for a chance... the chance to give my children safety, space, and stability.

Thank you for helping us take this final step toward healing.

— Amanda Brown & Family