This is an URGENT need. Here's the backstory:

Diane Waltrip, beloved mother, wife, sister, cousin, niece, friend, matriarch, and overall amazing human being, lost her battle with multiple sclerosis and COPD, an unfortunate complication of the M.S., on 2/21/25, at the age of 77.

Despite never having smoked, she struggled to breathe. She was bedridden and had to be on oxygen the last few years of her life. The COPD was making breathing more and more difficult, and the M.S. was making movement and dexterity extremely challenging.

She rarely complained though and kept living life in the moment and still had many things she wanted to experience, movies she wanted to see, shows she wanted to watch being filmed live, purchases she wanted to make (LOTS of things on Temu, lol!), and self-improvements she wanted to have done like corrective dental procedures.

Despite having meticulous dental hygiene, several of her front teeth had fallen out due to the nebulizer treatments she had to have regularly for the COPD.

Oh, and her nails, she always wanted me to paint her nails! I think it was her way of feeling feminine, and she always looked at her hands.

Her being gone still seems unreal. She was the goodness in our family. She wasn't just beautiful to look at. She had a beautiful soul and was very genuine. She had an amazing moral and ethical compass and taught my brother and me about the Bible and Jesus Christ's sacrifice for us from the time we were small children. She gave us a Christian foundation that we could draw upon and aspire to, something that has helped me never feel alone.

Now that she's gone, my dad and I are honestly struggling, emotionally, physically, and financially. We couldn't even afford her aftercare, so we borrowed money from a dear friend who we now need to pay back.

This is also a rough time because I lost my income. While I was on temporary disability, my position at work was backfilled. Once I was cleared by my doctor to go back to work, I was told I had 30 days to find my own new position or I would be administratively separated, which is what happened. My employer told EDD I voluntarily quit, so I was denied by EDD and had to go through the appeals process. We had a hearing a week ago, and my former employer admitted that's what happened, but I still have not heard anything or had any money back paid to me. They owe me money going all the way back to the end of Dec.

In the midst of all of this, our rent continues to skyrocket, something we've been able to just barely manage, but now my mom's pension check is being held up. It's supposed to transfer over to my dad, but there's a process. They require death certificates first, then they process everything, and then the money gets disbursed to my dad.

We couldn't initially afford the certificates, but dad was able to finally get them about a week ago and took them down to the physical location to be processed. There's no guarantee on how long they will take to release the funds, though.

In the meantime, on Fr 4/4, we were given a 3-day notice (business days) to pay rent, or they will begin the eviction process. We've been living in this apartment for almost 19 years, but in this same apartment complex for about 24 years, so imagining ourselves being evicted seems unfathomable, especially during this time.

Any help you're able to give would be amazing and mean the world to us. Times are tough for a lot of people, so we understand if you're unable to give. No amount is too small, though, so don't feel bad if you can only give a little. We understand. Prayers and support are also deeply appreciated.

We're asking for $6,400 at this time. Here's the breakdown:

Rent and fees for April are due, and they come to about $2,800. That's paramount to keep us from being evicted. We've got to get that to our apartments by Wed afternoon.

We've also got to pay our friend back the $2,400 he's loaned us for the cremation and other fees and needed necessities he's helped us with as mom's pension check and my EDD benefits have been held up.

That leaves $1,200, which is for the church, flyers, literature, printing out pictures, gas, etc. We're guesstimating on this part.

That's not counting May rent that might come through before the money is disbursed to my dad. That would be an additional $2,800 on top of what we're asking for. We're trying to remain positive though and hope that this isn't an issue again next month.

So if you're able to help, whether it be with finances, resources, prayers, support, or love alone, we appreciate you so very much!

~Christa and Bob