The Reese family requests your kindness

Hello and thank you for taking a moment to read this.

We are trying our very best to raise money for a down payment on our very first home.

We have all been affected by Covid-19, my wife Sonam lost a well paying job on Lexington Avenue and we had no choice but to apply for welfare.

Most of you know that I am a stay at home father doing my very best to raise our Aalea in a stable and artistic environment.

Aalea's first day of school was on September 13th, she went to school September 14th and came home with a note that read "New confirmed COVID case in the school"

either a child, teacher or someone part of the faculty was diagnosed with Covid-19 and they are all going to be quarantined.

They weren't at liberty to divulge any specific information like what grade or class but the COVID case was not in Aalea's class.

I immediately wrote a letter of intent and removed her from kindergarten.

After being a stay at home father for five years I finally had work lined up to save money while Aalea was in school and that evaporated in all of two days.

We have recently fallen on hard times and are asking for any donation that you can afford.

On a more positive note I have been chosen for an artist grant that gave me $5000 which will also go toward this down payment.

We currently live in a part of Elmhurst N.Y that has been plagued with the homeless that have set up tents just down the block from us, who keep us awake at night with their fighting and arguing.

There is rampant drug use in plain sight, and the level of litter is astounding on a daily basis.

Aalea asks me why there is so much garbage on the street and I do my best to explain that it is our responsibility to keep NYC clean but there are people that litter, but "we do not litter".

There have been two instances where people have tried to break into our home very late at night.

There is a part of me that is sad because I have to ask for help but then I look at Aalea and think to myself...

she deserves better, cleaner and certainly a quieter place to live and grow where garbage isn't the norm and people aren't using heroin at 11am.

From people defecating right across the street from our home, chasing each other with baseball bats or on a normal day just getting into physical fights all within 20 feet of where we live.

Our children's playgrounds are filled with drug addicts and the homeless sleeping on the kid's slides, and benches, I have had enough....

We humbly ask for any donation you could spare so we may also be spared from this terrible place and move toward a healthier existence.

We are desperately trying to make this move a reality as fast as we possible can.

We are planning on moving to a quiet community on Long Island where my wife Sonam has a handful of close friends.

I want it to be known that my heart does go out to those who live on our streets but I also see the level of alcoholism and drug use that seems to take precedence over getting help and recovering.
We appreciate all of your concern and support during this time,

Thank you and God bless,

The Reese family.