Alicia&Elliot emergency rental assistance

Dear friends and family,

I write to you with a heavy heart and as a last resort with help paying rent for the past few months. Background: I could not find affordable childcare for baby Elliot until February when he was 7 months old. Prior to that I was taking care of him all day mostly on my own and did not have the bandwidth to look for a new scientist position after paid maternity leave ended. I thought once he started daycare that I would find a job immediately, but the reality is I have applied to over 50 jobs in February, March and April, and still don't have any solid leads. It's just been a particularly hard job market in Bay Area Biotech with some big layoffs at some large companies recently flooding the market with qualified applicants.

As such, I have fallen behind a few months behind on rent which is extremely expensive in the Bay Area. (My rent is 2975/mo. It sounds like a lot, but when I moved in July 2022, I was single and making $125k salary.) The landlord has been quite nice and lenient about the situation as they have had to work with tenants in all kinds of situations since the pandemic days, but I really need to continue making payments in good faith in order to stay in my Oakland loft. Compounding matters is that I was supposed to start receiving Child Support payments October 1, 2023, but Elliot's father delayed the process by contesting paternity (I've known him for 10 years), and our court hearing wasn't until March 20.

Once I find a new position and the child support payments kick in, I am certain that I will be able to get back on my feet as they say and I will look back at this time as just a bump in the road. I have also reached out to several Emergency rental assistance programs but they have not followed up or some I don't qualify for. Any amount you can contribute at this time towards keeping me and Elliot's housing situation stable would be greatly appreciated! hoping to give landlord as much as possible by May 1st. I am eternally grateful for the love and support we have received from friends and family thusfar. Special shoutout to Gunkle Ryan and Auntie Ilana!

P.S. These past few months have been very challenging and stressful, but I have gotten through it with an overwhelming feeling of joy and gratitude every time I look at my sweet baby boy Elliot. I would not change anything in my life good or bad leading up to his birth, because every single bump and fork in the road led to his perfect existence. Everything I do is for him.