Help Richard Mercer Find a New Home on Wheels

Hello everyone,

I want to thank you for the support you have shown Richard Mercer in the last week. Your generosity is much appreciated. Thanks to you, Richard is no longer sleeping on the street.

For those of you who are not familiar with his story, Richard is 83-years-old and had been living a stable life in his van for the past 9 years. During a recent trip to Arizona, his van (with well over 300,000 miles) broke down. Richard was living on the streets of Camarillo until I reached out to our wonderful neighbors on Nextdoor. With your donations, we have been able to pay for him to sleep at the Good Night Inn here in Camarillo. Many of you have suggested that this is not a long-term solution, and you are right. The waitlists for permanent housing are long, and he believes others may need those spaces more than he does right now. Rather than lean on the system, Richard would prefer to pick up his minimalist lifestyle in another van he can call home.

Since Richard does not own a smartphone or computer, I will be acting as his fiduciary. All funds received through this platform will go to him. I will personally assist him in locating and purchasing a used van. Many of you have already sent money to me via Venmo and Zelle. I want to ensure that he has a safe place to stay, so those funds will continue to be used for Good Night Inn until we secure a new vehicle for him.

If anyone knows of anyone who is looking to sell their van, please share this post with them.

Thank you for your help.