As you know, these are trying times for all of us as we navigate through the unknown of the Coronavirus pandemic. At the start of this crisis, I had reached out to my former ballet instructor, Rodolfo Rodriguez, who is 87 years old and lives alone. His wife, who he was married to for 46 years, passed away suddenly almost five years ago. He has no children and no other family members. Knowing this, I have always kept in touch with him, but now more than ever, to ensure he is ok and be there if he needed anything. Turns out, that time has come. 

I called to see if he was ok on food supply and if he needed anything to make sure he didn't leave his home given his age and living in an area with a high amount of COVID-19 cases. He is one not to ever ask for anything or say he's in need, but I know the need has been there, so I pressed. I found out he was getting canned food donated from his church and that he hadn't been able to clean for a "while" due to his severe arthritis. I also found out his washing machine was not functioning, so he's been washing clothes by hand. 

This broke my heart. This is a man who was a world-renowned professional ballet dancer in his days, who met some of our world's greats and danced with some of the best in history, such as Alicia Alonso. If you Google him, you will see articles written on him and his impact on the industry. Yet, now he's almost been forgotten with no means, no retirement money, nothing to fix any of these issues, just barely surviving. I have always had such respect and a love for the elder.  We will ALL be there one day and this is not ok. They need to be cared for and shown compassion as we all would want for ourselves, most of us will be lucky to have family to watch over us as we age. 

So what started as a post in a Miami Lakes FB page for a washing machine search to purchase or donate became much more after the cleaning visit. It's devastating to know the conditions he has been living in with barely anything working in his home. We sent over new sheets and towels when we sent over the cleaning service and from that simple gesture, he is eternally grateful and says he felt human again. So as I've been overwhelmed with messages from people wanting to help in any way, I decided to create this to share a space where those who want to help can, while also sharing the details of what we now know. Here is a list of what needs to be done:

Repairing or purchasing new stovetop - does not work.
Plumbing Repairs - Shower does not drain and fixtures do not turn water on due to rust. 
New Microwave - does not work.
Replacing Cabinets in Kitchen - they are rotted and have mold.
Maintenance on Air Conditioning - is not currently cooling.
New Stackable Washer & Dryer - does not work.
Extermination - there is a roach infestation.
Deep Cleaning of Carpets
New Toilet - seat is currently broken and rusted.
Storage Containers
Lightbulbs
Cleaning Service - We will be covering this until we can get his Medicaid approved for this service.

Should we exceed our goal, we will use it to set up a daily hot meals service since he is currently being donated canned food. 

We will try to do as much as we can from the list above with the donations we receive to help him get back to normal living conditions.

More than anything, I want to provide hope. I want him to know that he is NOT alone or forgotten and that people DO care because that means more to us as humans than anything.

Thank you for your support!

Brittany