Hi my name is Stacey and I am desperately asking for donations and financial assistance to cover the cost of cleanup and renovations to our home caused by the devastating flood that happened in Leominster with the storm on September 11th.

The majority of the damage occurred in my basement, one third of which is utility and two thirds was living space for my son Jake, his fiancée Ashley and their six week old premature daughter Violet. My daughter Hailey also lives in the house with us.

When the storm hit we had water pouring in from the basement door and a few minutes later we had raw sewerage spewing from the tub drain and exploding upward from the toilet in the living space portion of the basement. There was at least six to eight inches of raw sewerage throughout the entire basement. When it reached the first step and it didn't appear to be stopping anytime soon I told my kids to pack a bag and take the baby to Motel6 (it was the only place I could afford). Merriam Avenue was bumper to bumper traffic and the water was almost completely covering the tires of the cars stuck on the street. As they were leaving, I called my son and daughter and told them not to go to Motel6 because it is in one of lowest points in Leominster and it was not safe to go there. They made it to the library. My daughter's car got stuck in the rising water and luckily there were people that helped push her car out of it. I called 911 to report the rising sewerage and was told to stay at the house and wait for the fire department to come. I was number seventy on the list at that time.

My children and granddaughter were relocated to the shelter that was set up at Frances Drake Elementary School where they met a volunteer worker named Val. She has been a Godsend and so very helpful. She helped them get clothing, food & formula and the city gave us a room at Great Wolf Lodge for three days. For all that help I cannot tell you how grateful we are.

We came back to the house on Friday because we have no where else to go. I have two bedrooms upstairs. I am sleeping on my couch so the kids have a bedroom. The house still smells awful despite the cleaning, sanitizing and dehumidifiers that have been put in place for the first stage of cleaning and restoration. I am petrified at the thought of potential future health problems breathing in the rancid air especially for my premature granddaughter but we dont have any other choice. I am worried about how I am going to pay ServePro now that the insurance company is refusing to pay them.

Upon inspection of the basement, all of Jake, Ashley, and Violet's possessions as well as the furniture are a complete loss. We are not sure about the heating system which was only two years old but every heat register is still covered in fecal matter. My washer and dryer and utility sink were also affected and are no good as they were sitting in waste water and excrement for three days. I am almost out of money and will have to use what I have to wash the baby's clothes and make sure she has formula. I am not sure how I will buy groceries or pay any of my regular bills because I had to use the money I had for gas and food while we had to be out of the house.

I called my insurance company on Tuesday and was told I have plenty of coverage for the damage including loss of use as well as replacement content coverage and not to worry. I should expect a call from the adjuster to come take pictures and assess the damage but in the meantime the agent would get ServPro in to begin the cleanup and restoration process. There seemed to be a light at the end of the tunnel and renewed hope. It was short lived.

Karen, the adjuster called on Thursday and told me they would be coming out and to expect a call with the time they would be out to my home. Meanwhile ServPro showed up and began the cleaning and extraction of fecal matter process. Karen called me back ten minutes later to regretfully inform me that MAPFRE Insurance was denying my claim and that I needed to go to the city because the problem was outside of our home, not inside, and therefore the city of Leominster's insurance company is responsible for all the damages to our home. I then went to City Hall and was sent to the Assessor's Office only to be told that the city is not responsible for an Act of God and that the sewer system is not equipped to handle a surge of eleven and a half inches of water in a three hour period, and that there is nothing they can do. I asked for a claim form and the ladies in the office proceeded to discourage me from filling out the necessary form, at which point I insisted that I at least be given the form. I went home deflated and called Erin the insurance agent for MAPFRE back. I told her what the adjuster said and she asked for time to speak with her supervisor and could she call me the next day with information. When Erin called me Friday morning she said she had some bad news. She said I only had $7500.00 worth of coverage for all the damage and there was nothing more she could do. Although this was a tremendous blow, at least it would cover the $2500-$3500 cost of the work that had been done by ServPro upto that point. An hour later she called me back to inform me that I would not be getting anything and my claim was being denied because the insurance company believes the city is the responsible party for damages. I argued that at the very least and because she called ServPro and authorized the work the insurance company is surley responsible for paying ServPro. Her answer was no that I would have had to call a professional to clean it anyway. I can tell you that is not the case. I would have had to clean it myself knowing I cannot afford to hire anyone for cleanup and therefore would not have made the call in the first place for something I cannot afford. So I am not sure what I am going to do at this point.

I went back to City Hall and spoke with Ellen who had the city pay for a company to come out and look at my sewer pipes with a camera to be sure there was not a break in the pipes as well as the DPW to check the road looking for a break in the road. All of the sewer pipes in the road and my home are intact with no cracks. Ellen is trying to find income driven programs that may be able to help. She also suggested I return to the Mayor's office and add my name to the list to have my inspected for damage to request federal help for repairs. However I was informe that I may not get any help if and when the federal government provides assistance.

To make matters worse, I worked for Lowe's until a firepit fell on my head last March. I have been out of work since April of last year and continue to fight with their insurance company for treatment. I have two dislocated disks in my neck, two fractured disks in my lower back, nerve damage extending to my hands and legs and a torn rotator cuff. I am scheduled to have another MRI on my neck and back in two weeks to determine if the damage to my neck and back has worsened since the last MRIs that were done and to discuss whether surgery is my next step. I have received $403 a week from workers compensation which does not cover my monthly expenses.

My son's fiancée Ashley is out on maternity leave from Walmart and has only received $298 every two weeks because Walmart Corporate had to approve her maternity leave as well as an agency for the state of Massachusetts in order for her to receive the correct amount of money. To this day she still has yet to receive all the money that is owed to her. My son only took two days off when Violet was born because paternity pay in Massachusetts is only sixty percent and for our household to survive he needs his full pay.

My granddaughter Violet's due date was August 27th. She wa born twenty-four days premature. Ashley went to Urgent Care on August first and was informedshe ws having braxton-hicks contractions, to go home and rest because the baby wasn't due ntil the end of the month. On August 3rd she woke up with pain that turned severe. I was waiting to see my neighbor that works at her obstetrician's office to ask what to do when Ashley came outside apologizing because her wter had ust.broken and it had made a mess. I got a towel and said dont worry about it lets go to the hospital. Thankfully we live five minutes away. I called my son who is an overnight security officer for Clinton Hospital to tell him to go straight to the hospital. When we got to labor and delivery a nurse gave Ashley an exam. She then looked to the nurse beside her and said I am not sure if it is the baby's head I feel could you double check. The second nurse said that is definitely not her head, lets get a ultrasound in here now. There was no time for a epidural adthen the doctorcame in and decided that Ashley needed an emergenct cesarean section because Violet was breech. We left our house at 7:15 am. My little Pickle, Violet was born at 8:14 am. Had it not bee for the fast thinking staff at Leominster's birthing center my granddaughter would have been stillborn and Ashley may not have survived childbirth.

My children and granddaughter are my world. They do not deserve what has happened and I feel like a failure because I am unable to provide them with basic necessities and a safe place to rest their heads. I am ashamed to have to ask for help but I have no other means to make the desperately needed repairs. Anything at all that could be spred to help us with this disaster is so greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read about our unfortunate situation and helping us.