When I first met Grace Garcia, she came across as a hardworking, well spoken, meticulous and always smiling, cleaning professional, I couldn't have guessed that she is actually a dentist turned cleaner, who had to flee Venezuela in pursuit of safety and happiness for her family. 

Rewind to 2004, when Grace (left side of the picture) and her husband ran a dental practice in Venezuela. 

Life was pretty good for their family of three - with their daughter Maria until 2018. Years of political and economic turmoil had led to hyperinflation, corruption and violence. Fearing the health and safety of her daughter, Grace left  behind her family, friends, work, and even her husband to emigrate to the United States. Her husband promised to join her in a couple of years, once she settled down.

Like most immigrants she came to this country with big hopes and dreams. She wanted her daughter to pursue a medical professional, but more importantly she hoped her daughter could have a safer life.

However, she found life in the United States was a big struggle. She didn't have friends or family to help find a job, and she struggled to communicate with little to no knowledge of English language. Basic necessities that we take for granted such as food and water were luxuries to her.  To make ends meet, she started taking ESL (English as a second language) courses at a local community college and purchased a used car with little borrowed money so she can look for a job. She took up jobs such as cooking, cleaning, baby sitting etc to make a hard earned living for her family. 

Soon after she found a job at a cleaning company, and she was able to enroll her daughter in a school. While she took a big step back professionally, she was delighted to have a life in this country and watch her daughter go to school, make friends, and learn English. She started dreaming of a bright future for her. 

However, COVID19 changed everything overnight. Grace lost her job. Her employer didn't provide any extra pay, benefits or insurance.

Today, Grace is struggling to keep the roof on her daughter's head and food on the table. She is overdue on her rent, and is at risk of losing her home. Her basic necessities rent, utilities and food cost $2000 a month. It's hard for her to sleep at night knowing that she and her daughter have nowhere to go, if she lost her home.

While she won't admit it, she needs our help.  This fundraiser is to help her get through the next few months while she is re-training to acquire new skills.

Grace is hardworking and resilient, and she is committed to providing a better life for her daughter. I have confidence that she will find new opportunities, but she needs a little bit of time & help. Please consider donating to help her in this difficult time.

We need to raise $6000 by June 30 to help Grace.