Help Velina and Cara Rescue Their Family Home

My name is Velina Brown. Imagine having to wear a hazmat suit while you watch the ceilings of your family home torn down, sections of walls removed, and all the contents of the house you grew up in disposed of in three 40 foot dumpsters. That's what my sister Cara and I have had to deal with after our parents passed away and we found the house was contaminated with mold and asbestos.

When the ceiling first began peeling we thought it was just a cosmetic problem. You've probably seen this textured spray-on ceiling material and like myself never thought anything about it. But the contractor I called took one look at the ceiling and asked what year the house was built. When we told him he suggested I get the ceiling tested to find out what was peeling off. I called an inspector the next day. The result: asbestos. It's not a problem as long as it's not "disturbed," but once it starts peeling it's no longer safe - and the ceiling had begun peeling all over the house. Also found was unsafe levels of mold spores. My husband, son and I don't live in the house but my sister was still there, and we were told she had to move out immediately. A regular contractor could not fix the mold and asbestos issues, what was needed was an abatement and remediation company. The house needed to be gutted, and most of the contents were considered toxic and had to go - not to Goodwill but to the landfill.

I am a freelance performing artist and high school drama teacher, my husband is an independent contractor and my sister teaches at a daycare center. Even with the problems the house has developed we so appreciate that our hardworking parents: a career army officer and a registered nurse were able to buy this house and pass it on to my sister and I. But we are emotionally and financially overwhelmed by the tens of thousands that are needed to rehabilitate the house. Any money we receive will go towards paying off the cost of the testing, disposing of the contents of the house, asbestos abatement, mold remediation and then the rebuilding and replacing of all the things that had to be torn out.

I know we aren't the only ones dealing with challenging times. There's a lot going on right now and the future can look pretty uncertain.

But if you can see your way to helping us rescue our family home that we can hopefully pass on to our son/nephew Zachary it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much for reading.

And if you are so inclined, thank you for donating. Every bit helps.

With appreciation,

Velina and Cara