Sharon Freedman is my 73-year-old neighbor in the amazing little community of Belmont, which is part of the amazing city of Charlotte.

What isn't so amazing about Charlotte is the affordable housing crunch. Older neighbors on fixed incomes are slowly being squeezed out to make way for "redevelopment", which mostly means 3-story townhomes with rooftop patios that only two-income couples can reasonably afford. 

Sharon isn't part of a couple right now. She lost her partner  to leukemia last year. She's on one income and on the verge of being homeless. Her landlord is going to replace her home with townhomes. I'm not faulting the landlord in this - it's his property. But, no joke, this is the second time this has happened to Sharon - she was squeezed out from one Belmont home to make way for redevelopment in 2017. Now it's happening again.

Sharon has reached out to ask for help. There have been newspaper articles and a TV news segment. This has been followed by lots of "thoughts and prayers" from the community but no place to live. 

But this is something we neighbors in Belmont and neighbors in the human community can fix. We just need to raise some money. 

I met with Sharon this morning and we hatched a plan. If we can raise $6,000, we can help her move into a place, then bridge a gap of a couple of months while she looks for a roommate who can help out with the rent long-term. It's not a handout - it's a hand up. It's a bridge loan, in which we'll get paid back by being able to rest our heads at night, knowing we did the right thing for a neighbor.  

I'm going to get the ball rolling with $100. If everyone in Belmont  (that's 800 homes) gives $5, we'll be nearly there.  If you can give $25, we'll easily hit our goal. So let's be neighborly!

News Article on Sharon
TV Clip on Sharon