A few years ago, I was reconnected with a friend from High School when going through the checkout lane at the grocery store. We weren't close in high school, but I remembered her as a friendly face. After talking with her on multiple occasions, we began going on walks together. During this time, she shared her story with me, and we got to know each other better.

Kim has had a difficult life. Born at 1 lb, the odds were against her from the start. She miraculously survived but this has led to a number of debilitating conditions including fibromyalgia, cerebral palsy, and eye issues. Even with multiple unsuccessful surgeries, her vision is poor and getting worse. She has a high likelihood of retinal detachment and future blindness. She also has cognitive/learning disorders and other forms of chronic pain.

In addition to this, she has experienced terrible personal losses, the worst of which was the murder of her brother. She has since been diagnosed with a dissociative disorder, depression, PTSD and anxiety, due to this and other traumatic life events. Even with these conditions and hardships, she was able to hold down a a job for 22 years, even though it put more strain on her body and made her pain worse.

On one of our walks, Kim told me that she just couldn’t work anymore. Standing on her feet all day got to be too hard on her body and she was having increased vision problems, that resulted in making more mistakes on the job. She was worried about getting fired, so she made the difficult decision to quit her job in 2022 and cash in on her retirement while she looked for a job that she could handle. She has been regularly applying for jobs ever since. She cannot find one willing to work with her health issues. She has reached out to other organizations that have not been able to offer support either. While struggling to find work, her mother passed away, leaving her with no immediate living relatives.

Kim has been able to live alone and take care of herself, but her retirement will be gone before the end of the year. She applied for social security disability but has been denied twice due to the fact that she is only in her 40s. She wants to work and wants to be able to support herself, but she can't lift or stand for long and has doesn't have the computer skills that most jobs require today. This is in addition to chronic pain. She has no other safeguards and does not have enough money to finish out the lease on her apartment, not to mention important prescriptions, food, phone, electric, and other necessities.

It pains me to see her go through this. The process for social security has been especially difficult with her cognitive and learning difficulties. The stress from this situation is also affecting her health. I have not been able to go on walks with her anymore because it is too painful for her to walk for long.

Kim is going through the next round in appealing social security, but it is a slow process. I am looking to raise enough money so she can stay in her apartment through her lease. Anything beyond that will go directly to additional living costs.

Kim needs more than I am asking in this fundraiser, but I hope this will buy her some time while she researches and applies for other resources that may be available to her.

Kim is a passionate music lover and is one of the kindest people I know. She is always looking to brighten someone else's day, and now I am asking for a little help brightening up her future.

No amount is too small. Thanks for your support.