Kiran

I never thought I would be here. Five years ago, I left to protect my children and myself. I truly believed the hardest part would be over once we were safe. I was wrong. It did not end. It followed us through the court system, through delays, emotional pressure, fear, and the constant exhaustion of trying to hold life together for my children while quietly falling apart myself. I have carried this for years. I have carried the stress, the heartbreak, and the impossible weight of trying to make life feel normal for my children when nothing about this has been normal. I am in my third year of my undergraduate degree, trying to build a better future for us, but I may now have to step away because I simply do not have the funds to keep going. Most of what I earn goes to my children’s expenses and to the debt I have built up from covering costs when support did not come in time. My medications, therapy, and physiotherapy have had to wait. I have gone without the things I need, just to make sure my children did not have to. Right now, my children and I are living with my parents because I cannot afford housing on my own. Housing feels impossible. The cost of living feels crushing. There are days when even groceries or gas for my car feel like too much. After the trial in June and July 2023, he was convicted and chose to appeal. Since then, our lives have remained in limbo. The little financial support I do receive is often late and far less than what is owed, but it is still something. If the appeal is unsuccessful and he serves time, even that could stop completely. I am asking for help because I am tired. Tired in a way that sleep does not fix. But I still get up every day and keep going because my children need me to. This fundraiser is for the basics. Housing. Groceries. Transportation. School needs. Medications. Therapy. The simple things that should not feel this hard. Asking for help breaks my heart