Emergency Shelter Fighting Cancer ;Burton Erspamer

Hello Everyone! My Name is Tina and I am burtons ex -girlfriend. We have known each other for almost 30 Years. We moved to Az from the Midwest together about four years ago. I am basically the only one he has here in Tucson and I will be leaving soon to go back to WI for awhile.and he will be left to fight the fight in his own.

Unfortunately, I am now turning to the public for help after begging him to allow me to do this. His pride def has always got the best of him

So, he is running out of resources.

Here is his story.Burton was diagnosed with the fastest growing small cell lung cancer a year ago. It WAS at the end of stage 3 when it was found and beginning of stage four when treatment was started. It WAS a mass in his left lung, on scar tissue from many pneumonia illnesses as a child growing up. Miraculously during the fight of all of his treatment it basically shrunk down to nothing. ( Go figure, he's basically a poster child ) Made it look easy peasy they went in and took the scar tissue out about a month ago. At this time ( because. His Dr had a welfare check on him a while back) the people that went to the house( that him and I lived in together and then he resided there after I moved out) reported the house and he was forced to move out because they were going to condem it. And let me tell you, he rode that out as long as he could. During this time we have tried every single resource for help for him. Housing , senior citizen help , shelters ,but he doesn't have an immune system ( still has to have maintenance for the rest of his life to keep it from coming back two times a month) so he cant stay in a shelter. American cancer society,lung cancer society ,etc low income housing.Every single resource we have tried a dozen times. And no funds anywhere. It is like banging our heads on a wall over and over again. He is a senior citizen,disabled and a cancer patient and the city has no means to help him with a long waiting list that he has been on for months.Being on half early retirement and half disability he doesn't make enough a month to live anywhere. Apartment here in Tucson ask for 2 or3 times the income of the rent. Burt does not make even enough for rent prices alone. He has tried talking to social security about this. not even him being a cancer patient he doesn't qualify for the extra income that social security provides for cancer patients because he is half early retirement and half disability. When he finally had nowhere to go, he was sleeping in the truck and occasionally hotels and airbnbs that him, or I or others have provided for him and back in the truck he goes.

We have been fortunate enough to help him thus far, and are running out of resources as we can't keep doing this till the funds are available for housing for him. He hasnt been eating properly or even enough food daily, which is very imprtant due to his cancer.

The problem is that with his excellent credit score an apartment won't rent to him unless he makes 2-3 times the income. With all the chemo and radiation and over a million dollars the insurance has paid and all the outlandish copayments he has paid has wiped out his resources.

The goal is to utilize all the donations into paying for a 6 month lease in full because it is the only way he can get an apartment without reaching the requirements of monthly income. While waiting for his housing assistance to kick in and that can be a long time yet. Hopefully into a place that excepts housing ,so when it's available for him he won't have to move again. So, it would have to be all at once for a six month lease. And hopefully by then help will be available.

The hotel stays will be no more by next week. As the funds will have run out and resources as people can't continuously pay for his hotels. Sense the struggle the last few months, he has started to cough up blood again and swears his lung is filling up with fluid again. They have already extracted fluid from his lung two times ,a liter and a half at a time. The stress is very real. I watch him all alone go through this suffering and stress and worry and he's starting to get sick again He has a Dr appointment soon at Arizona Oncology so I will update on here what the Dr says. Note- these are the same symptoms he had when we found out he had cancer.

I need help ,helping him. It's been some trying times.. We are both losing hope. All odds have been against him . Because he won't ask for help.

I've known him for years. We are still in each other's lives .He is and has always been the guy that everyone calls pops the one that everyone loves to be around, the one that gathered up dozens of people at a time for yearly "family BBQ'' and he cooked all the food on his homemade grill with old school charcoal. Owned two martial arts schools. Many of the youngens back then looked up to him and his Martial arts. Many many adopted nieces, and nephews who all look up to him. Loves his cars and bikes and just being that guy. I have watched him lose this spirit but, trying not to give up hope. Let's show him he's not alone and help him out please. He didn't fight so hard to beat this cancer for him to be living day by day trying to figure out where he's sleeping or when he's eating.

I am asking even if it's only a dollar or just a prayer, or a share or even a reach out to talk to him and here your voice will be so helpful and appreciated. His own bank account is linked to this go fund me. Just waiting for aproval so I'm working on that. hopefully will be ready in a couple days.

He and myself will be greatful and appreciative forever in debt to everyone that has helped in one way or another. We are running out of time. I am leaving soon and he needs all the help he can get to live independently .He's a fighter because in a years time besides myself moving out he lost his cat that he had almost 20 years,his companion, his home, one of his bikes and much more. And he's still standing. He went through all of this honorablyand quietly.

Thankyou and God Bless.