In September 2025, my dear friend Ronak had all of her belongings stolen from a friend's car the morning she was to fly out of the country. Everything that she owned, except for the clothing on her back, now gone. Just the year before she had been fired from a job for filing harassment from a coworker, and started living off her savings.

Despite the challenge of losing her job earlier that year, she made the brave choice of letting go of everything she owned and leaving the apartment she had lived in since moving to Illinois. She knew she was meant to explore a more meaningful life path, like many of us do when we are faced with difficulties. It was last April that she began pet sitting and house sitting in exchange for a place to stay, meeting wonderful and gracious people along the way.

The moment anyone meets Ronak, they are met with a kin like familiarity, kindness, authentic presence, and a listening ear. She is a true lover of life, full of heart and soul. Her joy and love is contagious! Originally from Iran, Ronak became a US citizen in August 2024 after building a life for her self nine years ago. This was a a doorway that opened into the next chapter of her life. Like many immigrants that move to the States, she was financially helping her family back home.

Through months of soul searching and refusing to let her current circumstances weigh her down, she decided to pet-sit in Spain in September, the beginning of what was feeling like a renewed sense of life. But it was just hours before her flight that life took an unexpected and devastating turn.

She and her friend had stopped to dance at DayBreaker to celebrate her new found path, and afterwards found her friend's car broken into with everything that Ronak owned, stolen. Her suitcase, backpack and carry on that contained her passport, laptop, iPad, journals, digital notebooks, clothing, and supplements. These were the only things that she held onto after letting go of so much. We all can relate that it's the deep sentimental value of what these objects hold–precious life memories, whether written or photos, that can never be replaced.

This Go Fund Me is to help her recover from this immense loss so that she can get back on her feet. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for your kind consideration. Every contribution, no matter how small, is a piece of hope and proof that the power of community can literally change a person’s life.

Peace,

Venus