My daughter Tanisha is a single mother raising three daughters after the heartbreaking loss of her 15-year-old son, Jelani, who passed away from a rare and aggressive kidney cancer in May.

His twin sister, Azaria, is struggling profoundly with grief and has required hospitalization as we work to keep her safe and supported. My younger granddaughters, four-year-old twins Everlee and Eden, are also grieving their big brother and deeply impacted by the stress their mom and older sister are carrying.

Azaria’s grief has been so severe that she has required emergency intervention on multiple occasions. During one crisis, when Tanisha called 911 specifically requesting trained mental health support, responding officers arrived and drew a gun on her grieving daughter instead of providing the calm compassion requested. The trauma of that experience compounded an already devastating loss.

Tanisha exhausted her savings during Jelani’s treatment and funeral. After two years of employment instability, she secured a consulting contract — only to have the employer refuse to pay two months of completed work.

As a result:

• Utilities are at risk of disconnection

• The mortgage is two months overdue

• Insurance and taxes are past due

• The cemetery has given 30 days to bring the grave marker account current

We need to raise $13,000 in the next 30 days:

• $8,000 to bring the mortgage, utilities, insurance, and other urgent household bills current

• $5,000 to bring the cemetery account current so Jelani’s gravesite can be properly marked with his engraved name, photo, and memorial vase

No mother imagines having to balance the urgent needs of her living children with properly honoring the child she has lost but that is Tanisha's present reality.

Tanisha is actively pursuing recovery of her unpaid wages and seeking new contract work. But right now, her family needs immediate stabilization so they can grieve without the added fear of losing their home.

If you are able to donate, thank you.

If you cannot donate, please share this fundraiser so it reaches someone who can.

Your support gives this family breathing room during the hardest season of their lives.

To learn more about Tanisha and her children — and to see and hear Jelani’s beautiful spirit — please visit their YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok pages under The Midwest Washingtons.