Help to give 80yr olds a new home

Unbelievable sad and tragic human story happening currently in Graz, Austria (Europe). As crowdfunding is
not common there so I thought I put it here and hope that people have a big heart to help after an extreme case of ignorance and injustice! 

Human is human all around the world and this old couple really needs help.

The story is about nearly 80 years old brother and sister who are forced out of their flat after living there for over 70 years. The investor (a lawyer himself) who bought the house managed to kick them out after ca. 7 years and 8! court proceedings he started against the elderly. Beside loosing everything they have, they will be homeless if they are not receiving immediate help. 

I am asking myself: How someone can do this cruel act to the most helpless people in our society? I am speechless.  Please help so the elderly can survive. 


Details: 

Since over 70 years (1942) brother and sister Mr. Ernst and Ms. Hermine Lerch moved together with their mother Rosa Lerch into a flat in Graz, Austria, paying a rent of ca. 150 EUR (162 USD) per month. As a poor family with ca. 300 EUR (320 USD) per month income, they were living under poor condition there in all those years. Half of the money went for rent and half for their living cost. 

When the house was damaged during the war, they repaired it at their own cost as they have been told the owner lives oversees. 

As they grew up there, they love their flat and emotionally they are of course very connected there. 

An investor (who is a lawyer by himself) bought the old house in the premium area and is planning to destroy the current house to build a new one or to renovate it completely. But Family Lerch was in his way as they didn't want to move out. 

So he started court proceedings (which Family Lerch could not afford) and started to destroy the garden and the house around the flat. According to the family, he switched off the water supply for days and didn't cover the windows of the remaining house so the old couple was freezing to death in the winter. Further they were forced to heat with wood in the winter, so their heating cost was extremely high. 

Both are saying that kicking us out from here will mean the end of our live. After our mom died in 2012 we want to stay here and we are used. Why they are doing this?  We can not afford another flat as today the rental prices are much, much higher. 

Finally, after seven years of emotional up and downs and court proceedings, the investor managed to kick the family out after winning the case at the Supreme Court. The court agreed with the investor who said the elderly have not behaved good (insulted the investor) and thats why they needed to move out.

As the family lived in the flat over 70 years, they didn't have a rental contract either (except of a registration paper which you can find in the attachment). 

And at the end, in addition to all the tragedy, the court decided that the old couple  has to pay for all the cost of the proceedings, over 3,400 EUR (3,700 USD) (see below). 

Being over 7 years forced into 8! court proceedings, family Lerch run out of money. They can not even buy food. They have received a few Grocery store vouchers to buy food from local people (who have seen the report in the newspapers and TV) so they have been able to survive until now. They are too old to work so they are on a very limited social security (ca. 300 EUR/320 USD).

There is no money, neither for paying the past proceedings they have been forced into, nor to move out of their flat. With the help of a "Anti Mobbing Organization" (NGO), the date the couple has to move out, could be postponed a few times. Now the court has decided that family Lerch will be moved out of the house finally by 15.08.15 and nothing can be done. 

Without help it would mean that this two very nice and friendly old people will be homeless and have to live on the street. 

Different media outlets in Austria have reported about this strategy over the last years, but nothing was achieved anywhere. 

The family doesn't know where to go and what to do. All the money will be given directly to family Lerch who will use the money for:

1.) Paying of the cost the court is asking for previous proceedings (ca. 3,700 USD)
2.) Paying for car and helpers to move out of the old flat
3.) Paying for rent for couple of month of a new flat and more importantly food. 

The money will not be used for any future court proceedings or lawyer cost as the final stage (Supreme Court) has been reached. There will be no further proceedings. 

Please Please help. Every dollar is important. 

Thank you so much for caring about the elderly and for all your support to help after the brother and sister duo received so much injustice and ignoranz! I will update regularly. 

I will put the links here of the reports  so you can see the reports and court decision. All is in German language right now, but I will translate the documents and upload it in English as soon as the time allows. 

Link: TV report about the case in "Am Schauplatz" ORF (main Austria TV channel) in 2014. You might not understand the language but the picture are talking for themselves 

Link: Report of newspaper "Annepost" from Mai 2015  http://www.annenpost.at/2015/03/18/familie-lerch-will-nicht-gehen/

Link: Leaving the house would mean the death of our mother - Newspaper "grazer.at" from 2012 http://epaper.digitri.com/1347376321325.dv?p=4#/4

Link: Austrian NGO collected and published all the documents of the court proceedings (right side, blue navigation) 

Link: Facebook page "No force against tenants" reports several times about the case 


Court decision to pay for the proceedings they lost

Pictures of the flat (before and after the destruction/renovation of part of the house by the investor)

Fruit trees and other plants, which Family Lerch planted there (archive): 


Investor started to destroy/renovate the house: 


Pictures out of the flat. Please see the video above for more info: