Support a Survivor: Help Maha keep her home

This is my mom, Maha. Six years ago, she finally left a mentally and physically abusive marriage that she was stuck in for over 20 years. The details of what she's gone through are too awful to put into words, but she has faced hardship after hardship and sacrificed her health, youth, and any chance at a safe and secure life all for the sake of her family.

She's currently in the midst of a very messy divorce that has been going on since 2019 and seems to have no end in sight as my father is making an active effort to avoid settling the slightest bit in her favor as payback for standing up to him. The court system has not been kind to her, as there have been multiple pushbacks and delays to court dates over the years by my father in an attempt to dry out whatever finances or savings she's managed to scrounge up for herself. So much so that any money being divided up is going to paying delinquent taxes on property put under her name (another decision made for her by my father without her consent or consideration). She has borrowed tens of thousands of dollars from friends and family and sought out any option she can just to stay afloat for the sake of her children.

My mom has two sons and a daughter, the latter of which is in high school and an amazing student, with many extracurricular activities and incredible grades to show for her effort. My younger brother, Yousef, and I have done everything in our power to financially support her with everything we have, with Yousef picking up as much work as he's able to so he can help with bills and me using my veteran's disability check from my time in the Marine Corps almost exclusively on other finances and bills she needs paid and covered, as my options for work have become limited. We are doing what we can, but it hurts me to say it isn't enough, and we are falling behind.

My father received a court order that required him to pay the property taxes on our home, but he has neglected and avoided doing this for so long that the delinquent taxes on the house have been purchased, and we have until September 1st to vacate our home. My father, knowing this, is now actively continuing to avoid his obligations to try and force her from the home by refusing to pay his child support/alimony—even going so far as to continue to claim unemployment all for the sake of spiting her. We have until September 1st to pay the delinquent taxes, or we will have to leave our home and find a new place to live.

My mother is a saint. She rescues and feeds stray cats, gives them and us the best life she can manage for us all, and never asks for anything for herself beyond the help we give. She has worked tirelessly to continue to support her family and has worked so hard for so long. Maha is a domestic violence survivor and has lived the worst years of her life under my father's hand. She does not deserve to lose the last remnants of happiness in her pets and her home all for finally standing up and breaking her family free from the endless cycle of screaming, breaking, and beatings she's been accustomed to her whole adult life. She deserves to spend whatever years she has left at peace, safe, and happy to be alive.

We can no longer rely on the courts to enforce any motions or orders before the deadline. We are organizing this GoFundMe to help cover the cost of the delinquent taxes on our home, as well as assisting with any future financial needs while we continue to pursue justice and close the book on her lifelong nightmare.

This fundraiser also serves as a call for awareness of the struggles domestic violence survivors go through every day.

Maha is a mom, daughter, sister, and continues to be a bright and positive light in the sea of negativity and pain she's been a part of for so long. Please help Maha and her family in these difficult times. Please help us to help her so that we can take as much stress and worry off of her shoulders as we can.