Kevin’s new start hits a road block.

Below is my original story. The road block is a broken ankle which I will be off of in a rehab facility for 8-12 weeks. I really could use assistance with paying bills during this time. I can not start work because of this. If you can help I would be most appreciative. Any help at all would be wonderful and if you are not able to help, please share this with family and friends who may be able to. I feel like my fresh start here in Virginia is coming to be a disaster and I need to get it back on track. I am forever grateful.

Hi, my name is Kevin Thomas and at the age of 54 I find myself in a place I never thought I would. I am homeless and on the waiting list for two different shelters, staying in a hotel room, that to this point has been paid for by the generosity of a few very good friends. Those funds run out very soon and I am not sure what to do. Thus the reason for this GoFundMe page.

To understand how I got here we need to go back several years to 2015 when after a couple years of successful dramatic weight loss, I had what is called an Aortic Dissection and my life was forever changed. The Aortic Dissection was not just a physical medical problem, although it was quite a serious one, it has lingered as a physical and a mental health ordeal.

I had suffered for years with a bit of depression and mild anxiety, but as I said, the Aortic Dissection changed my life forever. I have since suffered with much more severe depression and anxiety. Couple this increased depression and anxiety with the lingering affects of the Aortic Dissection to my physical health and you have a recipe for disaster.

Try as I might, the combination of all of this caught up with me and sent me in a downward spiral during Covid lockdown. I had lost the church job I had worked for 10 years a year after my Dissection and the the school I was working for after that closed it's doors at the end of the school year 2020.

During a pandemic was not a time to look for teaching jobs or church music Director jobs as most of music, in particular, singing was not happening. I tried to expand my private studio to teach voice and piano lessons online with some mild success. The economy started to spiral downward as we all know and things in my life from a personal finance standpoint was spiralling right along with it.

Fast forward through a lot of personal struggles I don't think any of you really want to read about on here, and we are back to where we began, in a hotel room with funds depleted, waiting for word from shelters that may be able to take me in and assist me to getting back on my feet.

"What does Kevin want", you may be asking yourself. Well this is the hard part for me. Asking for help has always been very hard for me. This is perhaps one of the reasons things have become so dire. At the moment I am not able to work for a number of reasons, both physical and mental health related. I am receiving some assistance in the form of Medicaid and SNAP. I am in the process of applying for social security disability insurance which can be a lengthy process. I do have a wonderful law firm working on my behalf.

So I guess what I am asking for is if you can help in any form monetarily so that I can remain in the hotel until there is room for me at one of the shelters, I would be forever grateful. I am a firm believer in paying things forward, so I pledge to you that should you assist me in my time of need, once I am back on my feet I will find ways to help others that find themselves in similar situations as I have.

Anything you are able to give is appreciated. No donation is too large or too small. Should there be excess funds beyond what is ultimately needed for the hotel stay, there are other areas of finances that can still be addressed that would help tremendously. If you have helped me in the past and in are not in a place to help again I understand. I appreciate the wonderful people that have come into my life and have helped from time to time.

Should you have any questions or just want to shoot me a private message of encouragement, please do so. Thank you from the depths of my heart for reading this jumbled mess of words and considering to help.

Kevin