Hi my name is Taffeta but friends call me Taffi. I was born and raised in the beautiful Sunshine State we call Florida. We have hot summers, non existent winters and some very unforgiving weather. I lived in Clearwater my whole life and went through many hurricane seasons growing up and not realizing how blessed me and my family truly were to somehow miss the devastation many of the hurricanes that hit Florida caused. It wasn't till October and September of 2024 that my whole life was torn apart in a way I was totally unprepared for. I just launched my first small business, E-commerce store for my Handmade Macrame art that I 100% committed and dedicated my all. My time, Other opportunities, Missed occasions with family, my ENTIRE life savings into My dream, My vision. My future. Its very bitter sweet the way I found my love for macrame. I was trying to find an escape from a horrible domestic violence relationship I was trapped in for years. That left me with severe panic attacks, Insomnia because of nightmares, constant stress and anxiety for my family and their safety. So when I would begin to feel the tightness in my chest, trembling hands, pounding heart, not able to breathe I would choose a pattern and each knot I tied the further away I got from being afraid and before I knew it all those horrible symptoms had faded away and I was ok again with a beautiful piece of art that is just a pinch more special because I turned my pain into something beautiful. Then I started making one of a kind gifts unique to the person. Then I thought maybe I could make my Hobby a life long small business and help Other young women through some of their darkest moments I planned on creating some kind of course or live session where anyone could come once a week and get lessons on how to macrame, share their ideas, or just a safe place to be them. Sorry I went wayyy off there.. hehe I opened my Etsy shop and not even a month later first came Hurricane Helene . She was pretty strong with lots of down wires and debris everywhere, the flood waters got a little higher then im use to but the power stayed on and I awoke the next morning to a beautiful sunny day with lots of yard work. A week or so passed and Hurricane Milton is the hurricane I will never forget. The ground was still saturated from Helene and there was still branches and all the debris that was collected and cleaned up in a piles by the curb still waiting to be picked up from the city or the clean up crews that help after a natural disaster occurs. All my neighbors and I were just starting to recover when Milton was a cat. 5 and downgraded to a strong cat. 3 right before landfall. I have never heard winds howl or wood crackling and the winds snapped the branches off trees and the loud banging on the roof as they fell to the ground, Within the first 2 hours we lost power. I did not have a generator and didnt realize how much scarier this storm was in the complete dark of the night. The storm drains in St.Petersburg Florida are useless. I never knew they were that bad. within hours the flood water was coming into my house I couldnt see my front yard or the road in front of my house the back of the house sat a little higher so I had to stay in that room praying the flood waters didnt reach me in there. All night long the storm raged on outside and all I could do is pray. The next morning when the winds had slightly calmed and the rain stopped, When the sun provided some light for me to see. My heart sunk. Everything I owned from my clothes to My entire business studio I created was underwater. Everything I just bought the month before to start my business The work equipment 2 computers 1 camera recording equipment shipping material macrame cord and accessories to create the beautiful art that so many loved. office supplies, my furniture, my appliances, The power was out for 4 days everything in my fridge went bad, The sweltering heat with the mugginess that came after the storm was unbearable but I couldnt really go anywhere for days because all the down powerlines and trees, LITERALLY palm trees were blown over to the ground, huge oak trees that were blown over that ripped entire fence lines out of the yards of neighbors. and then there were things that money cant ever buy that couldnt be saved. Family photos from my great grandparents, handmade items from my kids and little ones in the family and the thing I feel the worst about is my father in laws ashes that were put away but just low enough to get soaked. I couldnt believe how unprepared I truly was looking at the devistiation made me sick to my stomach. I did get a little help from Fema about $2000 that I used to replace the floors in my work studio/office but that was the only thing that covered. I had to buy a used computer and just accept the loss on everything else. AND if this wasnt bad enough within a couple weeks I found out just how much damage was done to the roof. After the storms I got my step ladder and rake and pulled what I could off the roof and thought that everything was ok but I was so wrong The next good rain we had I realized there was water beginning to come through the roof into the back bedroom that was a guest room I didnt occupy often. I had to tell the landlord who called a roofing company and they came out and basically told him the roof needed to be replaced or the damage was going to keep spreading. Fema did award me temporary shelter and I could have went to a hotel that would have been paid for while the repairs were being done but since I didnt realize how bad the damage was to the roof and a few weeks went by I never used the temporary relocation help and it expired by the time I realized I truly needed it. I couldn't stay there any longer with the roof damage and flood damage and because the relocation relief fema approved me for didnt get used within 30 days it lapsed and I lost that help. I ended up having to move to a hotel anyway because that was the fastest and only option I had and Ive been stuck here ever since. Im still waiting on the city of St.Petersburg to approve or deny the disaster relief programs they have I applied for in January and their projections maps are saying that some of the funding wont even be distributed till 2030!!! Before these life changing storms I had money saved to begin my business and purchase vehicle to use for my job. that money has now been wasted in an extended stay hotel that Im stuck at paying $500 a week and obligations makes it impossible to save money to get out of here. Ive just been making it by.I just want to get into a stable place of my own a cheap form of transportation and start to build my business again Im willing to put in as much work as it takes. I just need a little help being stuck in this living situation is hard to get out of because the weekly high payments and I need somewhere my mother who just had a liver transplant can come and I can care for her when she needs extra help. the recovery process for her transplant is a long road and has it ups and its downs. please pray for her liver to take and show no signs of rejection, and me to keep my strength and motivation to not give up. Its been very hard lately to stay positive, but everyday the good Lord lets me wake up to see another day is a blessing in its self. Thank you so much for believing and supporting me. Your love and support means more to me then I could ever put in words. God bless you and lots of love! Thank you kindly-