I have always believed the best in people. Even when I’ve seen the ugly, I try to find hope in this world. I was in the military and deployed to Iraq. I saw horrible things and beautiful ones as well but ultimately wanted to leave the service to help people in a different way. Once I left the military I became a pharmacist. I am honored to work with a wonderful hospital and help take care of a special group of patients. I was building an additional dwelling unit (ADU) in my backyard for my mother and a scam artist claiming to be a military veteran took my entire savings this September and disappeared when I was 8 months pregnant. I believe he timed it for when he knew I wouldn’t have time to pursue him due to the birth of our son. I have contacted the police and this is apparently not a criminal offense. The only recourse I have is to sue a man I can no longer find and it is unlikely I will ever get the $30,000 he stole back. I completely trusted this man due to his military service and I can’t believe he used this platform to gain my trust.  I thought I was helping a fellow veteran. I no longer have any money for emergencies or to finish the project. Our backyard is destroyed and a dangerous place for my children. We are a good family. We didn’t deserve this and my children didn’t deserve this. I have spent months crying over this and am no longer too proud to ask for help. Please help a mother, a veteran, a healthcare worker believe in people again. If anyone can help us finish this project, we will take whatever help we can get!