I'm creating this blog because of something on my heart. I hope to help a family in need. You see I went to the SPCA this morning to find a dog for our family. As we were waiting in line, a family approached us and started asking questions. They wanted to find out if we would be willing to take their dog. They happened to have the exact type of dog, with the exact temperament we were looking for, so we agreed, as long as we could go through the SPCA to adopt her. We had a lot of questions though. The family said that she was the best dog they ever had, and so this prompted the natural question as to why they'd give her up. And in talking to them, I found out that the father had lost his job because his boss had screwed him in some way. I didn't find out more details at the time, but also, they had to move out of the place they were renting because the landlord stopped paying for their water (they were paying the landlord but the landlord was not paying the utilities). Their water was shut off, and they had to move into a motel. They're one step away from being homeless. I stood there, a grown man myself with a family of my own trying not to look horrified, trying not to break into tears. They desperately didn't want to give up their pooch, a member of their family, but here it is and they were. All they wanted was for the pooch to have a good home. I can cover that, but their plight struck something in me. When they left, I broke down just briefly then pulled myself out of it but it still stuck with me. You see, we're in hard times. In case you all aren't aware, this is the new great depression. The "d" word is a bad word these days but it's the truth and here we have a family that is on the verge of falling apart as a result. The two moments I could not get out of my head, the two that motivated me to DO SOMETHING was when the lady's kids started crying, and one of them said something about their dog. Their mom asked them to try not to say those things because she was about to cry. She nearly did too, but she said to them that it was hard enough because they were loosing everything. Finally, the SPCA took their dog back to one of the pens in a separate room, and the father wanted to give his dog one last goodbye, but the lady in charge wouldn't let him do that because she was too busy. Another guy was nice enough to allow him to see his dog though finally. My wife and I agreed to exchange contact information with them so that they could visit their pooch from time to time and when we were finished, the father walked out having said his last goodbye to his dog. I could see the agony on his face. It's heartbreaking to know that the actions of just two bad actors are all it took to send this poor family reeling. Well I'm not just going to sit idly by watching their family fall apart. Now I'm pretty well off. We have some financial challenges on the horizon, but I feel we'll be okay, and our family will be able to meet them. We can't support another family though, which is why I'm doing this. I want you all to help me DO SOMETHING. Help me help them. They're not helpless at all. The husband and wife both have skills, but they're in professions that are not hiring right now. The depression is breaking families apart. There are a lot of families suffering and falling apart, but I just want you to help me try to keep this family together. I will be placing a donation button on this site. 100% of what you donate will go to them guaranteed. There is no middleman here even though I am sorta the middleman. And although you may be tempted to think that I'm just looking for a handout and I'll just go buy a new car with this, it's a valid concern. You have no reason to trust some anonymous nobody. But if you feel moved by my story (a certainly very true one), please consider donating. Even a single dollar makes a difference. Imagine if 1000 people donated just a dollar. That'd keep them afloat for a month or so, enough time for them to get back on their feet. Maybe just enough to get them through. I will post updates as much as I can in the coming weeks, and hopefully I'll have good news to share with you. Until then, God bless you all, and I hope you're all doing okay out there.
