UPDATE: We reached our initial goal of $1,000! Thank you! Well the way GoFundMe works is once you reach your initial goal they kick it up a little bit. That's what they did and I'll be honest with you we could use the money to put in a new water heater which was not included in the initial $1,000 ask. Joe is very excited about returning home to a fully prepared house and I want to thank you all so much!

My name is Guy Conti. My wife is a professional guardian, and an area where she has specialized in pro bono or low bono service has been assisting veterans who cannot make or communicate informed decisions.

She has one client who we will call Joe. Joe served with honor and received honorable discharges from two branches of our military service.

Joe's physical health is fairly good, but he suffers from severe mental health issues. When Kate took over as guardian, he had previously been in the Veterans Administration hospital for over 9 months and had been experiencing homelessness prior to that.

Joe grew up in Ann Arbor and desperately wanted to return to Ann Arbor. However, the Veterans Administration could not find a suitable guardian who would fight for Joe's wishes. Michigan's Adult Protective Services phoned Kate and asked if she would be willing to help this veteran in need.

Kate took on Joe's case with amazing vigor and determination. Within about a month, Joe was ready for discharge from the VA hospital, and Kate managed to find him an amazing mobile home and an amazing mobile home community right in the neighborhood where Joe wanted to live. Oh yes, there was controversy and a fight to get the mobile home park owners to allow Joe to buy the mobile home in the park because they were fearful of his mental illness and what that might mean to the peace and prosperity of their park.

Still, with my assistance and the assistance of other people and the local fair housing advocates, Kate was able to purchase a mobile home for Joe in the perfectly placed park and still was able to have a little cash left over to help out when Joe had a need that exceeded his monthly Social Security benefit.

Unfortunately, it has come to Kate's attention that Joe's mobile home has serious plumbing issues, and the water service cannot be turned back on until the plumbing issues are resolved. As you may or may not know, getting trades done in a mobile home is often more expensive than in a regular stick house. This is no different.

Joe has been back in the VA hospital for the last 3 or 4 months, and he is getting ready to be discharged, but there is no way Kate can place him back in the mobile home unless the plumbing is fixed.

We have checked with local charities. One charity tried to get us a better price by asking their plumbers to bid on the job. However, nobody has stepped forward with any cash. Kate was able to get a small grant from Michigan's Adult Protective Services, but it looks like Joe is going to be a couple of thousand dollars short.

Joe is a great guy. Yes, he has his mental illness problems, and he can be quite annoying to deal with. But again, he's a great guy, and he is an honored veteran of two branches of our service.

The Veterans Administration and its hospital have refused to financially assist Joe.

Would you please consider any donation for Joe's benefit?