I am raising funds to help secure Damon Bond's home and his future from those who took it from him. At present, he lives in an "apartment"-style garage in Denham Springs that was built behind his parents' mobile home. This was designed to give him his own place with the possibility of having someone live in the mobile home later who could assist Damon when needed. Most of you know Damon from working at the local grocery stores or from his nickname "Rerun" on the sidelines cheering for Denham Springs High School Football. He is a lifelong member of the LDS church and as many of you also know, Damon is special needs, mentally handicapped, and permanently disabled. What many of you do not know is that Damon is 53 years old and on the verge of being homeless. Upon the passing of his mother, Mary "Bootsie" Bond, I learned that his parents had duplicate wills created locally with Ivy Graham. In the wills, I was included to help take care of the estate and Damon. They had allocated money for this to be done in addition to insurance policies. What I did not expect to happen was that Damon would be left with nothing and fighting for a home to live in.

Damon's father, Carl, was permanently disabled from previous work injuries and had suffered numerous strokes. He was confined to using a wheelchair to get around. After the passing of Mary, Carl turned to the casinos. At this time, he met someone at the casino I will not name who happily offered to help Carl, as Carl was handing out money. To keep it simple for this story, this person became Carl's "friend," living a nice lavish lifestyle using Carl. As Carl was unable to understand mentally what was going on, this person continued to spend Carl's money and ultimately all of Damon's inheritance. Carl was illiterate and used a flip phone, but bank statements showed money streaming out monthly using bank withdrawals (he had access to Carl's bank card) and online purchases. When I say they spent all of the money, I mean ALL of Damon's inheritance. All of the cash stored in their safe for Damon was spent, insurance policies cashed in and spent, stock options they owned cashed in and spent. As Carl was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and his time was counting down, this person continued to take everything Carl owned. Four months prior to Carl's passing, Carl was picked up and brought to a notary to SIGN OVER the property rights to this person. Again, an illiterate person suffering from strokes, dying of cancer, hardly verbal and definitely not in his right mind, signed a single donation paper taking the last thing Damon had. None of this was known until after Carl's passing.

Yes, we did attempt to fight this from the beginning. Carl's will was missing and Mrs. Graham lost all of the backup files in the flood. We tried going to court, but the individual avoided the subpoenas and the judges wouldn't make any rulings. Then the attorney had personal issues and took time off. A second attorney was able to complete the successions for both Mary and Carl, but was too busy to continue the fight over the property. Damon does have ownership of the doublewide (which needs renovation) through the succession, but it is the land and his "apartment" that we are fighting to get.

Many may see Damon as a burden. I will admit he can be stubborn and even demanding at times, but he is still a person needing care. The church and teachings of Christ remind you that the special needs are a Blessing, not a burden. He is also kind-hearted and really just likes having friends and family that are willing to slow down and spend a second to just talk. I will also admit it is not easy taking upon the responsibilities of a 53-year-old "child," and I definitely couldn't do it without the help of my wife and kids. We prepare and deliver meals, manage his money and bills, bring him to appointments, and help him in any other way needed. Also, a special thanks to his neighbors and friends who also assist with Damon and even just offer him company!

This is where we stand and what we are trying to accomplish: I have spoken to a couple of attorneys and we can fight the battle in the courts, but the cost will continue to rise and with all judicial systems, there are no guarantees. The other option is to settle with the other person and have the matter resolved. I have spoken to both him and now his attorney, and he is wanting 50% of the value of the property. They did have an appraisal done, but it is not a fair and accurate one for the property. They included the mobile home, which Damon owns separately, and did not accurately value the "apartment." It appears they valued both from the exterior only and assumed both were fully up to date, which is not the case. I am in the process of arranging for another appraisal to accurately value the 1 acre of land and apartment while acknowledging the mobile is not included and has no value added to the land. (The titles and registration are assigned to a trust) While I disagree with both options, I have no choice but to raise money so that Damon can secure his home back from those who took it.

We are trying to raise enough funds to have the case settled. Any extra will be used for home repairs that are needed and for Damon directly.

Please share with as many as you can. I am also available if you would like more information.

Thank You,

Brad Cummings