It’s taken me six months to get up the courage to write this as I’m not the kind of person who likes to ask for help but since it’s the Season of Giving I decided to give it a shot.

My name is Michael Burr & I served I the U.S. Air Force in Việt Nam from 23SEP69 - 21SEP70. As a result of that service I am rated at 50% disabled by the Veterans Administration.

The past two years have been very difficult. After having lived in Việt Nam for five years (2017-2022) on my “Give Back” mission I had to leave because of immigration issues. I lost nearly everything; thousands of dollars worth of clothing, photography gear, etc. That was pretty devastating. I left Việt Nam on July, 18, 2022. On the trip back to the US I contracted COVID. I spent three weeks couch-surfing in Long Beach, CA (my former home) recuperating before flying to Florida to take up an offer from an old friend to live in his home. My mental state continued to deteriorate and on July 18, 2022 I voluntarily checked myself into the Psych. Ward at the Gainesville, FL VA Medical Center. After receiving treatment I was discharged on September 5, 2022 after which I returned to my friend’s home in Ocala, FL.

As my depression deepened the living situation became untenable so on October 25, 2022, now homeless, I flew back to Long Beach, CA and on October 28, 2022 I checked in to the US Vets Transitional Housing Facility in Long Beach, CA. This supposed “safe haven” was to prove to be one of the most disgusting places I have ever stayed. I won’t go into the gory details suffice to say that it is deplorable the way veterans are treated at this facility. Not surprisingly my depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms increased but at this point I had no alternative but to stay there.

On February 28, 2023 I received a call from my mother telling me that my 98 year-old father, a WW II veteran, was being taken to a hospital. After a few days it became apparent that the was not going to recover. I flew to Sarasota, FL on February 5, 2023. By that time my father had been placed in hospice care so my mother, younger brother and I spent three days, Feb., 6, 7, 8, at the hospice center watching my father die; it was not a pleasant experience.

Since March 2023 I have been living with my mother who will be 99 on December 24th. She is legally blind, very hard-of-hearing and is quite frail. Fortunately she is lucid and not suffering from dementia. We are getting along pretty well under the circumstances.

I have been utilizing LYFT to run errands and to take myself and my mother to medical appointments. It’s nice to be driven around but the costs are killing me; I estimate that I have spent in excess of $1,000.00 on rides over the past 10 months. Anyone who has lived in south Florida knows that not having a car makes it extremely difficult to get around as public transportation is lacking.

So… I need a car. Nothing fancy or expensive but rather something small and reliable. I estimate that $10,000 will be sufficient to get myself a car that is not going to break down every month, cover the sales tax, and the first year’s insurance.

I’ve attached some photos of myself in Việt Nam, a recent photo, myself and my mother and my mother and father.

Thank you in advance for your generosity and Happy Holidays.

Sincerely, Michael Burr