My name is Janine. I am reaching out to help my dear friend LaTasha Martineau as she tries to grieve while at the same time she is trying to gather the funds to have her beloved cousin Charlie cremated.

As young children, LaTasha and Charlie were the best of friends. Once Charlie reached his early teens, the signs of schizophrenia began to surface, and life as they knew it changed rapidly.

With Charlie’s extreme mental health issues, he eventually succumbed to homelessness. LaTasha was the only family member who chose to be there and look after him as best as she could. She would take him clothes as well as meals on a regular basis for years while he lived in a tent on the streets of Sacramento. Of course, she tried to get him housing, yet Charlie was determined to stay where he built his home.

Sadly, on May 28, 2025, at the age of 46, Charlie passed away alone in the tent home he created alongside the railroad. With LaTasha being the only family wishing to ensure Charlie is able to be properly cremated for his final resting place, we are asking for your support to help ease the financial stress as LaTasha grieves and prepares to say a final goodbye to her childhood playmate... her cousin Charlie.