My dear friend Maria Klopfenstein is a single mother of 8 wonderful children. For a very long time, Maria, trying to handle her crumbling situation on her own so as not to trouble anyone else, has found herself in an impossible situation. Recently, Maria and the children fled to a woman's shelter to escape an unimaginable situation of mental and physical abuse but are now up against the time limit regarding the length of stay at the shelter. She and the children are staying with another family temporarily, having been turned away from other shelters due to a lack of space.
Since Maria was a child, she has suffered from debilitating migraines that doctors have been unable to relieve. Multiple MRI's have turned up nothing. Regardless of her suffering, she has lovingly cared for her family and home with few complaints, always praying for others and remaining as cheerful as possible.
Almost 18 months ago, the only means of paying the bills was lost, and Maria did everything she was able to do to keep the family afloat virtually single-handedly while still managing the home. This proved to be futile. She sold everything of value that they owned and tried to find other money-making opportunities where possible, all the while never letting anyone (friends or family) know how desperate their situation was. Groceries were sparse, car and home maintenance were not an option, and the list goes on and on. Their family home is in foreclosure, and she does not own a vehicle. Maria is borrowing two vehicles to get the children to school and their doctors' appointments. When Maria's friends and family started to find out the dire situation that Maria and the children were in (finances and abuse), those that knew did what they could to help, but this was a much more serious situation than they could handle. The children have tried to pull together to help mom in different ways. Caleb, 17, Maria's second born, started working to help out and earned some money to help buy the family a used car, but the car was in such bad shape it was already unusable. He has had to stop working due to sports injuries that started as shin splints and have turned into Swollen tibias. His recovery will require him to wear a painful boot, one leg at a time. Ben, 15, Maria's 3rd born, wants a job to help but is currently experiencing asthma-related issues, leading him to be seen by a pulmonary specialist.
Maria's husband has filed for divorce, and their divorce will be final soon. The women's shelter where she was staying had a pro bono lawyer assigned to her within one day. One staff member even said this was one of the worst cases she had encountered and advised her to come to the shelter immediately as the safety concerns for herself and the children were serious. She has no financial means to take care of herself and the children but is currently looking for a job that will put her in the position of finding care for her youngest, Mary.
If anyone can help, please reach out, as she wants nothing more than to get on her feet and put this family back together with the generosity and prayer of people like yourselves.
***Elijah Sheridan is a friend of the Klopfenstein family and fellow church attendee who will help disperse the funds to Maria to pay immediate bills, housing, utilities, purchasing a vehicle etc***