Security Equipment for Gyo
The Story
Just before midnight in the last minutes of Jan 20, 2017, my husband Gyo (Sergio) was assaulted violently by vandals who were spray painting "FAGS" on his car. The assailants punched him in the jaw, and held a gun to his head. It was almost pitch black, and he was defenseless. We were targeted by what appears to be someone in our neighborhood, and we do not know if the perpetrators will come back.
We are a gay married couple living in Kansas City, Missouri in a home we bought this year. We refuse to bend to this kind of bullying and violence. We will not be afraid in our own home.
Excerpt:
"About an hour ago, at midnight, I received a tearful, desperate call from my husband Gyo who was at home alone while I was helping out at a show downtown. He explained between gasps that he had heard something outside and went out the back door to check it out. A man was hiding in the dark by the door, and grabbed him, and put a gun to his head. While this was happening, he managed to see another man spray painting his old Honda del sol.
Once the spray painting man noticed Gyo was at gunpoint, he ran up to Gyo and punched him square in the jaw. Then, the assailant yelled “Look Away Look Away.” Gyo ducked, and turned back into the house in pain, and immediately ran upstairs and called me. He told me later that he heard them drive away just then, so they were probably parked in our driveway. "
The Purpose
I feel that it is my responsibility to keep my husband safe, and to do that we need to install video surveillance outside of our home, update locks with higher grade equipment on all doors, install motion activated floodlights, and subscribe to an alarm company.
I have agonized over this all day. Is it ok to ask for help when there's a good chance we could probably scrape by with the bare minimum and get into some debt?
Gyo is the most important person in my life. He has overcome so much in the 7 years we've been together (married for about 3.5 years!) and deserves to feel safe in his own home.
If we surpass this goal, we want to support three things equally:
1. Donating to local resources that help vulnerable QUILTBAGs in our community. (Queer/Questioning, Undecided, Intersex, Lesbian, Trans, Bisexual, Asexual, Gay)
2. Donating to Planned Parenthood and other local Womens' health organizations
3. Donating to burlesque producers in Kansas City who give this city a bustling performing arts scene.
Here's what you get:
Instead of asking for something for nothing (which has its place) in this situation, I would feel more comfortable attempting to give back some sort of value in return for donations. We are incredibly privileged to live the lives we lead, and we know there are many people who are less fortunate than we are, who do not have the diverse and beautiful community to rely on.
For different tiers of donations, I will create custom drawings in exchange. They will be 1500x1500 pixel digital drawings that can be used as your profile photo on Facebook. Each drawing takes between 1 and 3 hours, depending on the tier. Once I send you the artwork, you are free to do whatever you want with it, including printing and framing, and getting a canvas print made. It's yours for helping us through this.
See below for examples:
$20 TIER EXAMPLE:
$50 TIER EXAMPLE:
$100 TIER EXAMPLE:
To redeem, please have the profile photo you would like to have drawn on your facebook profile, and make sure you have connected your facebook profile to your donation. If not, please include a link to the picture you want drawn, as long as it is square. I reserve the right to artistically interpret whatever you send me.
(You may send me the photo through e-mail if you prefer as well. )
Timetable:
I am committed to creating a safe environment to live in our neighborhood. I am also committed to earning that goal. I will draw these pictures on a first come, first served basis, and I will try to complete 1-5 per day. I plan to keep a running tally of whose artwork I am running on, and will include a link to show the list at that time. Please expect delivery to your inbox no later than one month from your donation.
Thanks:
Thank you so much for your outpouring of love and support for my husband. He is surrounded by people who love him, and he will get through this. We promise to keep you updated on the legal side of things, as well as while we're working on assault-proofing our home. Thank you for your compassion that has touched our lives in immeasurable ways already.
Contact:
To reach us, you may email me through GoFundMe or contact me through Facebook. If you would like to avoid GFM fees, you can send us donations through Paypal at [email redacted] and still get your art. :)
