A new home for Johnny and Mouse!
Donation protected
Hello internet! My name is John-Allison Weiss but my friends call me Johnny. I'm a songwriter and traveling artist, and I live in a camper trailer with my cat, Mouse. In 2020, in order to pursue music full-time, I downsized my life and moved into my Jeep and then eventually an $850 travel trailer I bought on Facebook and fixed up myself. I fell in love with trailer life and spent the next three years dragging my home from place to place to visit all the friends I've made over my fifteen-year career as a touring musician.
In April 2023 my first trailer, a 1980 Sunline, was hit in a parking lot and destroyed, leaving me without a home. Thanks to the generous support of my community, I was able to buy a replacement rig and get back on the road within a month, but after just over a year of living and traveling in the new rig, I'm sad to report I've found myself in a similar situation as before.
Two weeks ago, after finishing up an amazing Southwestern ramble in my beloved 1995 Coachmen Catalina, I hit a windy patch on the highway and lost control, sending my trailer into a fishtail. Luckily I avoided an accident and I was able to slow down and get to the side of the road. Unfortunately this is how I discovered that old water damage to my trailer had caused the wooden trailer structure to rot off the metal frame, and the violent movement during the fishtail had ripped the trailer's walls away from the floor. I was able to safely tow the trailer to my friends' house where I am now trying to figure out what to do next. By my standards (low haha) the trailer is livable when stationary, but it's not safe for the road anymore. To fix it would require a total rebuild, which I'm just not sure I have the time, space, energy, or skills to do by myself. This is why I think my only option is to once again ask my community to help me buy a new trailer.
Asking for help is not easy for me. I grew up in an environment where being in need, especially financial need, was a sign of weakness and made you a bad person. That said, I completely disagree with the way I was raised, so I'm trying to extend the same grace and care to myself as I do to others, and ask for your help.
My goal for this fundraiser is to purchase a really nice used trailer, something less than 10 years old with fully functioning utilities like water and electricity, and some luxuries like extra space, big windows, and safety features I haven't had before. If I can reach my goal, I could get a rig with amenities like...
- Newer Build (a trailer less than 10 years old will have stronger construction while also being lighter weight)
- Air Conditioning (I can handle the heat but Mouse cat needs comfort in the hotter months)
- Big Windows (I require sunlight for my mental health, and also want to make sure Mouse has a perch to look out at the world)
- Solar Power (something with solar installed or the ability to add solar in the future would let me go totally off grid)
- Working Propane System (neither of my rigs have had this, but it would be a game changer for cooking off grid)
- Plumbing (this is least important -- I've loved my compost toilet and foot pump sink since day one -- but might be nice to have running water!)
- Safety Features (extras like a weight distribution hitch, sway bar, and professional installation, which can add hundreds if not thousands to the cost of the actual rig)
- Perfect Layout (I've always wanted to build a decent recording setup for songwriting in my trailer but haven't had the funds/space to do it. If this GoFundMe is successful, I could build out a basic studio in my rig and be able to record new music from anywhere!)
Insurance unfortunately is paying $0 towards my old trailer, but between help from family and friends and this Gofundme, I will still hopefully be able to afford an amazing rig and a new sense of security along with it!
If you can't help financially, just sharing this with your social network is huge. You can also stream all my music everywhere, which is a giant boost for my ego (extremely welcome right now)! Honestly thank you so much for even clicking this link and thinking about contributing!
Take care, be good, and I'll see you on the road!
x
JAW
Find and stream all my music here:
Join my Patreon for $5/mo to become a regular supporter:
Buy t-shirts with my full name on them:
RIP to the best. I loved this rig.
Organizer
John-Allison Weiss
Organizer
Kalamazoo, MI