Rebuild Brian and Assylay's Life After Tragic Fire

Our dear friends Brian Thabault and Assylay Zhamkenova just experienced the unimaginable. A sudden fire, caused by a gas explosion in the basement, destroyed their entire apartment and almost all their belongings. They narrowly escaped the fire with just a few documents. All this happened just three months after they started their life together as newlyweds.

Brian, a dedicated musician and artist, lost his entire music studio, most of his record collection, and over 50 pieces of his own irreplaceable artwork. Assylay lost all her fabrics and sewing machine, music equipment, and her entire collection of vintage items. All their electronic devices were lost, including multiple phones and laptops. On top of this, their beloved cat, Meeno, is still missing after the fire.

They are currently both working to rebuild after being left with no home, no belongings, just each other.

We are coming together to help them rebuild their lives from scratch. Every contribution, big or small, will go toward securing housing, replacing essentials, rebuilding their livelihoods, and supporting them as they navigate this devastating loss. The number we propose here does not need to be met for survival, but will go a long way towards ensuring a successful future together in NYC.

Please consider donating or sharing this fundraiser with your network. Let’s show them they are not alone.

Thank you for your kindness and generosity.

**edit**

We are completely blown away by the generosity of this community—thanks to you, we’ve reached our initial $20,000 goal! We’ve now raised the goal to $30,000 so we can also extend support to Brian and Assylay’s neighbors, who lost everything in the fire as well. Any additional contributions will help not just them, but others in their building who are also facing this devastating loss. Thank you for your kindness and for proving that no one has to go through this alone.

❤️