Support Keith and Lisa's Healing Journey

Keith Coleman and I, Lisa Westbrook thought we would sell our house and

live in our RV for a while. I have retired after 30 years of service from Cherokee County School District and Keith was making great progress in his acting career having earning some parts on TV series. The plan was to travel around and see the country while Keith would be freed to auditioned for shows and movies. Then life happened.

Keith was involved in a car accident that injured his back, ultimately resulting in back surgery that was semi successful. The RV was in need of repairs and we also needed to find a permanent place for it, which could not be found in metro Atlanta. So we moved to the mountains in Ellijay. Then came an actors strike and Keith stopped getting work.  I got a job at a local company working in the office. On April 9th I  got sick and went to the ER. They said it was a pulled muscle and gave me meds. One week later when I started running a high fever and feeling even worse, I went back to the ER. They found out that I had meningitis and as a result, spent 2 weeks at Mountainside Medical Hospital in Jasper.  It became serious enough that I had to be sent to Grady Memorial in Atlanta for another week. Once released, I had to be on IV antibiotics 24/7 for 6 weeks. Needless to say all of this racked up an enormous bill.

While all of this was happening, we also had both of our cars become inoperative. Keith’s engine blew and had to be totaled. My car was being repaired by a local “mechanic” who ended up conning us out of money and still didn’t fix the car. After getting the Sheriff’s Office involved, we were able to have it towed to a real mechanic and it is now being repaired.

Then came our “test of Job”.  Our hot water heater broke, the propane in our generator now won’t turn on, and we have had no electricity for over a month. It gets cold in the North Georgia mountains and we are not looking forward to the cold months that lie ahead. We have had it partially repaired but it needs a new inverter which could possibly be over $2000.

I lost my job while in the hospital and while Keith was doing odd jobs wherever he could find work, he wrecked his motorcycle, our only mode of transportation, on a rainy night several months ago. He broke his collarbone but thankfully he is slowly recovering .

I am now able to work and did find another job in Ellijay working in the bookkeeping department of a small business. However, due to transportation and other issues, that hasn’t worked out and I am currently seeking new employment. Our bills are so much larger than our current income, we just are not able to get on top of our debt and meet our basic needs of electric,  transportation and heat.  We know that when we both get our health back and can get serious work, we will make it fine.  It looks like for now however, we could use a little financial help to get back on track.  Keith and I both can’t believe nor thought we would ever be in such a situation but here we are. Life happens.  If you would like to help us to get back on our feet we would be extremely grateful. 

When we do get back on our feet, we are committed to pay forward any help we receive by helping out some others who might be going though unforeseen life situations.

Thank you for any help you can give!