Dear Friends, Family and Colleagues,

I’m reaching out because my friend Tanya Bonner is facing some critical challenges with her health which has greatly impacted her financial stability, and she needs community support right now.

I’ve known Tanya almost my entire life, and some of you know her too as a fellow Dolphin. We went to middle school and high school together. And she faced challenges I could not have even imagined, including having to take care of the grandparents who raised her, including being their medical proxy at the end of their lives and making sure both were laid to rest with honor and dignity.

And she did all of this while still a teenager and a college student. She never gave up. She went on to graduate on time with her college classmates. She would later go on to graduate school and a career in Journalism because she wanted to do work that could help society and where she could be an advocate for others where there was none for her as a child. In addition to her professional work, she always has made time to advocate for her community by leading grassroots movements for which she has received recognition from New York State legislators, and serving on her local Community Board for over five years.

But Tanya has had some serious medical setbacks, including severe osteoarthritis and heart issues that have impacted her ability to work consistently and they led to a recent surgery that has left her having to utilize at-home medical care and rehabilitation.

For someone who has given so much to society, to others, to social justice movements and to communities, I want to be there for her when she herself now needs community and with time being of essence in this emergency. I am looking to raise $5,000 that will help Tanya to continue to stay housed in her apartment, have access to food and other basics while she continues to heal and get her health in a better place. As Tanya faces this emergency, please consider giving whatever you can. Every donation, big or small, makes a difference.

Thank you, and keep Tanya in your thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,

Shana