For the past near decade I have been completely out of the workforce to care full time for my father at home. Chiefly, he was end stage renal on home hemodialysis, had congestive heart failure with aortic and mitral mechanical valve replacements and cirrhosis of the liver. All of this was further complicated by anemia, COPD and significant neuropathy. My father was terrified at the thought of being placed into a care home because he once investigated nursing homes in his career. To accomodate his need to be home, I sacrificed my entire life, career, income, financial stability and my prime years toi dedicate myself fully to his care. He passed away on April 26, 2026, just two I months ago.

By 2024, finances were more than tight. Living life with my dad's health condition is very costly and we had both depleted everything we had. We were surviving on just his social security. In my dad's best efforts to increase cash flow, he took a reverse mortgage that, in my opinion, he was sold with much less than full transparency and without all the necessary information which became apparent when he passed away and I received a demand letter for complete payment of the reverse mortgage or to sell our home. I know that my dad was deceived by a mortgage company selling reverse mortgages because without one doubt, I know that my father never would have knowingly sold our home out from under me. My dad was always concerned about my safety and wellbeing and to knowingly put me in this position upon his passing is contrary to anything that he ever spoke of. Unless I can pay the full balance of this reverse mortgage, I must sell our home of 46 years at which point I will become homeless. What to do with everything to my name, what my father left behind, the piano that he learned to play on, my late grandmother's china cabinet and fine china and my cats and dogs I haven't the first idea. Every night now is full of anxiety and I can not sleep, constantly worrying about that first night out of my home, on the streets and and my cats and dogs rehomed in their interest. All that I can do is await the day that I am ordered out of my home of 46 years and frankly, this is a frightening place to be. In between sleepless nights I spend my time in constant communication with the reverse mortgage lender (out of necessity), with my probate attorney, and sending letters to the Presudent and HUD Secretary thag they might add some language reverse mortgage regulations that would include protections for caregiver resident heirs such thag we aren't thrown into homelessness due to bureaucratic oversight.

I can't describe how blessed I was to have those last years with my dad. People are overflowing with kudos and appreciation for doing as I did. They say what I did was selfless and noble. But what I did for my father and the decade-long job gap that it created is a real turnoff to prospective employers. They don't like this at all. Noble though it was, becoming reestablished in the workforce it has made practically impossible. They aren't interested in the two decades of work ten years ago and they see full time caregiving for a critically ill parent as nothing more than a job gap. To be fair to myself and the many other caregivers out there, providing my father's full time care is the only job that I've ever had that was 27/7/365 with no days off or holidays and the entire duration is spent in a state of constant fight or flight mode. There is no desk job or otherwise that will ever rise the level of caring for a parent whose prognosis is guarded critical. Recruiters and hiring managers are quick to brush us aside but haven't the first idea of just how dedicated of people we are and how well we truly do work under immense stress. Nothing in the workforce will ever amount to having the life of one's parent in their hands - an overlooked skill that we have developed quite well that would transfer into the workplace. But since we aren't paid for what we do, we are often unemployable. Needless to say, finances are stretched to the maximum and Ihave a home that not only do J have to maintain and keep bills paid but that I am also trying to save. At this point, any little bit helps and everything small grows bigger.

The fundraiser picture is my father who passed away at home on April 26, 2026. I know he is appreciative and I certainly am both grateful and appreciative of any little bit of assistance that comes my way. God bless you all.