Support Edward's Fight for Stability and Justice

Help Edward Overcome Housing and Disability Challenges

Hello,

My name is Edward, and I am reaching out during one of the most challenging times of my life. I’m navigating the devastating impacts of late-diagnosed disabilities, housing instability, and unemployment while fighting to secure a better future for myself and my girlfriend.

Our Story

Throughout my life, I have been battling severe disabilities, including Idiopathic Hypersomnia, Autism, ADHD, and PTSD. Despite having these conditions all my life they were only diagnosed within the last year. They significantly impact my ability to stay awake, my memory, my ability to think, manage social and professional life, communicate, and function, making everyday life a struggle. Despite these challenges, I’ve been working hard to build and maintain stability.

I'm currently 30 years old but my life has been riddled with challenges due to these undiagnosed disabilities. At 18, I was homeless and struggled greatly with my mental health. I found a path forward with IT certifications I earned during high school. I attempted to build a career despite the significant challenges I faced, not understanding why I always felt so unequipped and struggled so much with seemingly simple parts of life, both socially and professionally. I was constantly being told I was lazy, stupid, or crazy when I tried to explain the struggles I faced. I was constantly asked if I was abusing drugs or alcohol due to my physical state because of my disabilities, and regularly struggled to earn respect despite a strong work ethic and ability. I always felt isolated and was regularly rejected from life and society due to my disabilities. This led to continued trauma and isolation.

I now have answers, having been properly diagnosed as an adult and beginning treatments and programs, but the damage to my life during this time has been overwhelming. I've tried to find support through government and community programs, but this turning point in my life has made these challenges impossible to navigate. I reached out to my landlord for several months requesting assistance and understanding of the challenges I faced in everyday life, but I was ignored and even punished for my efforts.

Our landlord denied reasonable accommodations for my disabilities that would allow me to better uphold the lease agreement and navigate the struggles I faced due to both disability and financial challenges related to disability. This led to an improper eviction filing that forced us into months of stressful litigation, further exacerbating my health. A variety of factors and gaps in state assistance forced us to represent ourselves pro se, adding to the complexity and impact. Retaliatory and arguably harassing actions by the landlord, such as withholding access to vital resources and issuing improper debt collection attempts, only made things worse.

I was able to defend successfully against the eviction, causing it to be dismissed and expunged, but at great cost to our mental health, physical health, and our already impacted finances.

The stress of these events caused severe emotional and physical tolls. I was hospitalized due to a stress-related unresponsive state while attending a standard physical therapy appointment and have required assistance from 911 for various mental health crises that occurred during these events. The compounding pressure also led to the loss of my job, as my disability caused me to oversleep and miss a crucial team meeting.

My employer, despite knowing I have a sleep disability, chose to terminate my employment for missing a monthly team meeting that occurred outside of my normal work hours. This is believed to be a wrongful termination due to changes in my medication and the impact of my sleep disability, but the manager of my team did not show any regard for this, and the situation has been escalated to various HR departments and regulatory agencies. I am currently being denied unemployment benefits due to this termination until investigations are completed.

Why We Need Your Help

We are now at a crossroads. Without stable income or housing security, we are facing immense financial hardship:

We owe over $2,800 in rent for the amounts challenged during the eviction process, and the risk of another eviction looms large.

I must file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy to manage our debts and protect our housing.

We need funds to cover living expenses, moving costs, legal fees, and medical bills.

We are pursuing legal options regarding the impact of these distressing and wrong decisions from both my employer and landlord, but the resources available to us currently make this nearly impossible.

How Your Support Will Help

Your generosity can help us:

Pay off outstanding rent and legal fees to avoid eviction and regain stability.

Cover legal and filing fees for the Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

Secure basic necessities while I search for new employment and navigate disability support systems.

Address past and ongoing medical expenses related to my conditions and treatments.

Your Impact

By supporting us, you’re helping two people in crisis regain hope and stability. Your kindness will allow us to overcome these challenges and focus on rebuilding our lives. We are committed to making the most of every dollar donated, and we will keep you updated on how your contributions are making a difference.

Thank You

I know times are difficult for everyone, and I greatly appreciate each and every person who's taken the time to read and consider our story. Now that I'm aware of my disabilities and shortcomings in life, and now that I've found someone I feel loves me and supports me in ways I never knew was possible, I desperately want to find stability so we can grow together and build a family. I believed I had finally begun taking steps toward exactly that, but it seems every turn in life has walls I was never allowed to scale.

With the proper support and structures being accessed, slowly, I believe this can change moving forward. But for now, our lives face imminent risk and danger, as public and government resources are slow or barred due to the various overlapping factors. Any assistance you can provide is a crucial step toward helping us overcome these seemingly insurmountable challenges. It will allow us to reclaim stability, rebuild our lives, and finally address the disabilities that have caused so much invisible suffering for so long.

Thank you again for taking the time to read our story.

Sincerely,

Edward

I am happy to answer any questions or provide verification of any and all events described, but must redact and censor various information for privacy and legal concerns. I hope I have everyone's understanding that some of the events, even if we firmly believe they have occurred and have evidence of. For this reason, we cannot provide detailed information regarding case numbers and filings, names of individuals and businesses, or specific accusations until further legal action and consultation.

I will provide updates as our story evolves. Thank you again for your consideration.

Documents and Verifications