The heart of the community can be seen and felt when people come together to help others in a time of need. And this is exactly what took place recently when there was an outpouring of hope and support for a local young lady in need of a home.
Several years ago, a group of local women were put in touch with a local young lady who had fallen on hard times. Due to certain privacy issues, the young lady requests to remain anonymous. According to Melanie Davis at the Greater SouthShore Chamber of Commerce, the young lady had lost her mother unexpectedly.
“Her story was truly heartbreaking,” said Davis. “Her world started to down spiral. Her mom was her world — they lived together, worked together, etc.”
Very soon after her mother’s passing, she had to move items into a storage unit and ultimately found herself living out of her car. Because of COVID-19, many shelters were completely full and there were long waiting lists. This young lady had no children and no spouse. But she continued to work to make her storage unit payments as well as her car and car insurance payments.
During her struggle, the group of women stayed in touch with her and would help her find temporary places to stay. The group tried to advocate on her behalf for shelter assistance, but unfortunately most of their solutions fell through.
Fast-forward to a dinner gathering on a Monday night in May. While brainstorming, someone suggested buying a tiny home for her. Unbelievably, the plan started coming together. Someone from the group knew of a lot that was available and another person knew of a reputable tiny home that was for sale. In a flurry of action, a GoFundMe account was set up and the group needed a few weeks to raise the money needed. A plea to the community went out, and the $36,000 they needed was raised in merely eight days.
“Nearly 200 people donated, businesses donated specific services, residents ordered items online and had them mailed to her,” said Davis.
The story was shared on a closed Facebook page where a group of local people in the community get together to help people in tough situations. This particular event was such an inspiration in the community, and hopefully it will inspire others to reach out to help others in the future.
In the words of Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.”
