I’d like to introduce you to Jill and Cookie.

It would take volumes to describe how lovely these people are so I’ll just say this.

In talking about when to post this campaign, Jill wanted it to be after the Holidays because she wanted to make sure people were spending money on their loved ones, and that no-one would get any ‘less than’ because funds were going to our campaign.

I knew Jill would think this way because she is one of the kindest genuinely sweetest humans I have ever met. This is simply her nature. I

don’t know Cookie quite as well but the twinkle in his eye and his humor just shine.

There’s nothing heavy or negative about either of these folks, even in their current situation.

Asking for help is never easy, so I thank them for finally allowing me to help how I can by hosting this campaign.

Here’s the situation.

Jill and Cookie can no longer afford to stay in their rental cottage here in our coastal Oregon town, but they have no savings to allow them to move to Missoula, Montana where they have family and their limited income can afford them a rental, and enough left over for essentials.

How did these lovely hard working conscious optimistic people wind up in a situation like this?

Here’s how.

Jill went through a divorce from her first husband in her mid sixties, just at retirement age. She was no longer covered by his health insurance and had mot yet gotten her own when she was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. This news came more or less at the same time she got the news that she had won her year long battle with breast cancer.

The Lymphoma diagnosis put her in the hospital for a month and then she underwent chemo. With no health insurance.

Her bills exceeded the value of her house in Hawaii and her life savings. She lost everything that was meant to support her retirement and the rest of her life.

Jill moved back to the mainland where it would be easier to afford life on her monthly social security check and eventually met Cookie.

Cookie had his own business before he and Jill met but the recession of the 90’s left him with clients who couldn’t pay their invoices. In an attempt to save his company he delved into his life savings but ultimately lost the company to the financial crisis as well as his life savings.

Jill and Cookie married, and together they have created a good life together and live with gratitude in having each other and always ‘enough’.

They are both nearing 80 now (though you would never know it!) and Cookie has just had to leave his job due to diabetic neuropathy in his feet and legs as well as heart issues. It is a possibility that in the near future Cookie will need a wheelchair.

Without Cookies paycheck, they need to move to a place where the monthly rent does not take the majority of their new and lower income, and there are no such rental properties in our area.

Because they have no savings they can’t afford the cost of a move somewhere else, in this case Montana where they have some family and they can find a rental they can afford.

Their combined children are helping as much as they can, pooling together to help subsidize their cottage rent here through March so Jill and Cookie have a little time to raise money for the move and so they don’t have to move in the winter.

The help we are asking for will cover their actual move, including new tires and making sure their car is in good shape for the trip, gas, U-Haul rental, (a family member has volunteered to drive the van), hotels during the move, movers to load and unload, incidentals, and a little cushion to ease the ‘living paycheck to paycheck’ when there is no more paycheck.

We hope you can help!

Thanks for reading and many many thanks in advance for any help you can give us.

Take very good care,

Valerie,

Jill and Cookie’s neighbor and friend.