Support Sasha's Journey to Rebuild Her Home

My name's Cristina Amaya. I'm from St. Petersburg, Florida, which was recently affected by Hurricane Helene. But this fundraiser isn't about me. It's about my best friend of 31 years, Sasha Ahles.

Sasha lives in St. Petersburg and has suffered life-altering damage to her house. This house has been in the Ahles family since 1969, where Sasha's father, Roger Ahles, was raised and where Sasha now raises her 8-year-old son, Grayson Ahles.

Sasha is a hardworking single mother. She's been raising Grayson with as many resources available to her, working hard to provide him the best life possible. Grayson attends coding bootcamps, plays soccer, and she sits with him every night helping him finish his homework.

On the night Hurricane Helene was 130 miles off the coast of St. Petersburg, Sasha’s father faced record-breaking storm surge, which reached 6.29’ - the highest ever recorded in the area, Though their home had never previously flooded, the surge brought water past his knees as he desperately tried to save his childhood home. Unfortunately, raw sewage was in the water and many items, including childhood memories spanning 3 decades, furniture, electronics, and more were lost.

Sasha has worked so hard not only to provide a good life for her son but her family. Her mother and father focus on helping to provide childcare while Sasha's job as a hairstylist is the source of income for their family. In the days after the hurricane, Sasha didn't jump to make a GoFundMe (even though I begged her to); instead, she offered hair care services for free for anybody who needed them in St. Petersburg.

I, and with Sasha's permission, do not ask for this help lightly. We know that it is a tough year economically, a tough time for others in the Southeast. But if you have anything you can spare at all, it would be greatly appreciated.

I'm aiming for 10,000 USD. I know this doesn't fully cover household repairs, but any little bit helps. I know that Go Fund Me takes a percentage but the remaining funds will be used to help reinforce flooring, fix windows, fix roofing damage.