Aid Chelsea and Tesla After Hurricane Devastation

My name is Chelsea and my wife Tesla and I are fundraising to get back on our feet after hurricane Debby flooded our yard and wrecked my vehicle. Aaahghhh!!!!

My wife and I are both 31-years old and we have been together since the tender age of 17. I work full-time in a Publix Bakery (I have an amazing boss that has been *so* understanding of the situation) and together we have conquered everything life has thrown our way. I'm proud to say we are in the process of buying a house. But this tropical storm-turned-hurricane really caught us off guard, and now we're stuck in our yard until the water dries up.

I am from Central Florida and we live near the Withlacoochee river - the same river that is currently occupying our property.

A a result, we have a few problems on our hands:

1. My car is out of commission

When attempting to brave the waters back home, my vehicle became stuck in a muddy hole that was far deeper than predicted. Thankfully we have some amazing neighbors who were able to get it back in the yard, but the interior is completely ruined and now I'm dealing with my insurance company. Until this water dries up I have no choice but to wait it out, and nothing can be done about the car until then either.

2. We're stuck and I cannot get to work until this is resolved

At the moment I have no ETA on how long it will take to fix/replace the car, but I can safely assume it can be anywhere from a few days, to more than likely a few weeks. Either way this impacts me financially.

My insurance claim was accepted at the cost of a $500 deductible (yay!) but this still doesn't alleviate the issue of making money. That is, I cannot go to work until the water dries up, and only then if I can find a way to get there. I work 1-hour outside of my place of living and my shift starts at 4-5AM. The area isn't very uber friendly either, so we really have no idea what the plan is yet.

Besides insurance and my last paycheck, we don't have any safety nets in place to make this easier on us either - my wife was laid off a few months ago, and despite job hunting the whole time, she only got a call back just recently but hasn't started yet. We're going all-in to buy this house and have been living paycheck to paycheck for several months now. Life hasn't always been easy, but I'd like to believe if we can cover our bases for the month, everything will go back to normal.

The goal I set is precisely how much we spend on food (including cat food), medication, electricity/water, phone plan and car insurance every month + the deductible. I am not asking for anything more than what we need, only what's important. I also have plans to ask my landlord to forgive the rent for this month. We're on a rent-to-own lease and I'm fairly certain he'll help us out.

Here's a breakdown of the bills I will be using the money for:

Food: $200

Medication: $105

Electric/Water: $150

Phone (AT&T): $150

Car insurance: $150

Deductible: $500

Just to be clear, your donation will be going to me directly, to help cover my insurance deductible and the immediate needs of my household; but most of all, you will be donating towards my peace of mind.

I cannot stress that last bit enough—more than anything this has been a blow to the heart; we are humble, hard-working individuals that just want to get by and live a quiet life with our cats and this whole situation has been devastating. Especially for my wife, who battles with major depression and intrusive thoughts caused by OCD.

(Here's Tesla and one of our sons, I promise we're real!)

If you can't donate, don't feel bad; we'll get by. But please consider sharing this to spread the word - any help you can spare will go a long way!

Thank you for taking the time to read this; and remember, never underestimate a hurricane!