WE RAN FOR OUR LIVES — NOW PLEASE HELP US FIND A SAFE PLACE TO START OVER

17 years of violence. Four daughters. One terrified mother. We left with nothing because staying could have cost me my life.

There are some things a mother should never have to tell her children.

There are some nights a family should never have to survive.

And there are some choices that no mother should ever be forced to make.

But after 17 years of domestic violence , I reached the point where I knew I had to choose between staying and risking my life—or taking my four daughters and running with absolutely nothing.

So we ran.

I was beaten.

I was nearly killed multiple times.

For years, I lived with fear, trying to protect my daughters and somehow make it through another day.

Then we finally got away.

We didn't leave with a moving truck.

We didn't leave with a bank account full of money.

We didn't leave with a new home waiting for us.

We left with the clothes on our backs and each other.

And now we're trying to survive the aftermath.

We have been staying wherever we can— on people's couches, in shelters, and sometimes on the streets.

Imagine being a mother and looking at your children when you don't know where you're going to sleep that night.

Imagine trying to make sure your children get to school while you're wondering where their next meal is coming from.

Imagine finally escaping the person who hurt you, only to discover that freedom can come with homelessness, hunger, fear, and nowhere safe to go.

That is where we are right now.

My daughters are trying to continue going to school.

I'm trying to find work.

I'm trying to keep food in front of them.

I'm trying to find transportation.

I'm trying to find somewhere safe and permanent for us to live.

And I'm trying to hold myself together because my girls are watching me.

They need their mother to be strong.

But the truth is, I'm scared too.

We're starting over with almost nothing.

And every day, I'm faced with the same question:

How do I keep my children safe when I don't have the resources to give them a safe home?

That's why I'm swallowing my pride and asking strangers for help.

Because I have learned that asking for help is not weakness.

Sometimes asking for help is how you save your family.

We desperately need help getting into stable housing and covering the basic expenses that come with starting over—food, transportation, clothing, school needs, and other necessities while I work toward becoming financially independent.

I'm asking you to help us stay gone.

Please understand what that means.

When someone escapes domestic violence but has nowhere to live, no transportation, no money, and children depending on them, the road back can become frighteningly easy.

I don't want to go back.

I don't want my daughters growing up believing that abuse is something they have to accept.

I don't want them wondering whether tonight will be another night of fear.

I want them to have a door they can close behind them and know they're safe.

I want them to have beds to sleep in.

I want them to have food in the refrigerator.

I want them to be able to go to school and dream about their futures.

And I want to wake up one day and realize that the worst part is finally behind us.

We don't need a perfect life.

We need a safe one.

We need a chance.

We need someone to believe that our lives are worth helping.

If you can give $5, $10, $20, $50—or anything at qqqqq , please know that your donation can help us take another step toward safety and stability.

If you can't donate, please share our fundraiser.

Please send it to your friends.

Please share it on Facebook.

Please share it anywhere you can.

Because somewhere out there may be the person who can help us get the safe home we desperately need.

For 17 years, I survived.

I finally found the courage to leave.

Now I'm begging for the chance to build something better for my four daughters.

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We left with almost nothing.

But we left together.

And as long as I have my girls, I will keep fighting.

Please help us turn this terrifying chapter of our lives into the beginning of something better.

Please help us stay safe.

Please help us start over.

Please help my four daughters and me. ❤️