Rebuilding Together Through Creative Collaboration

Collaborative Conviction will shift 10 Furbabies and their Neuro-Spicy Queer Artist handler away from a Traumatic Eviction —

Our circumstances suck, but I believe in the strength of Community.

Uncomfortable taking without giving back—I want you to know that your contribution will displace the dark fears and rebuild a bright, safe world for them and me, so that together you and I can collaborate to bring your creative world to light.

Hello, old friends and new. Readers, fellow authors, and all reaches of this beautifully diverse creative world. I am Shannon, better known as S.I. Hayes, and I need some help. That last part still tastes wrong. I am used to fixing things, not needing to be fixed.

I HAD a huge, long-winded story. I WAS gonna tell you all the crap that has led US here, but here is the gist:

I am one of you. I am a Physically Disabled, Supersized, Neuro-Spicy Queer Female Author and Artist who has been screwed by “the man,” and my furry children are taking the hardest hits.

This tale goes back to March, and a 32-year-old hot water heater that had me so hyper focused on the safety hazard I thought the symptoms of a near-death level bilateral saddle pulmonary embolism was a Panic Attack.

It was a clusterfck. What followed is too long, but all roads have led us here and now.

Strap in, it's gonna hurt.

• June 1: At a farce of a hearing, the judge signed off on an immediate eviction.
• June 2: Less than 30 hours later, Management obliterated our lives in 90 minutes.

We were traumatized by heartless people who trashed everything we owned. Police officers had to shove my senior cats into totes with holes punched into them with a knife because management refused to give me until the weekend to pack and leave, even when I literally begged them. An officer physically stepped in to rescue my late father’s salt urn from being thrown into a trash bag.

I literally only have 2 standard U-Haul U-Box containers to show for 9 years of building a life. The sound of shattered glass is a pretty good indicator of what's left inside them.

Cat houses, Doggie bed, gone.

THEIR FOOD, my FOOD gone.

My computer, my lifeline, is destroyed. My clothing and most of my possessions were lost or destroyed.

Instead of a safe space, my 10 furbabies and I are crammed into a highly limited, unpredictable, and tense single room, living on borrowed time.

My depression is hitting hard, and I am fighting severe ADHD-C, OCPD, and CPTSD, which are severely triggered by all of this. But I have a 10-fur-baby life support system that manages me and my crazy like no other. It is for them that I am doing all of this.

I did not collect them. They came to me through the death of my mother and life.

Boots (13+): A Himalayan who is gorgeous now, but was so traumatized she spent up until I got her—a little over a year ago, when my mom passed—living in a closet. Before this new trauma, she was finally lounging out in the open. Now, she's hiding again.

Mama : A tortie who is old enough to have a cataract and is declawed, but sweet as can be.

Missy ( aka Roach ): Named because she sleeps like a dead one on her back, she is Mama's baby girl and her shorter, fatter twin. The exact opposite of my mother and me.

Fizzgit : A fluffy-tailed little surprise who keeps everyone entertained.

Kai (10): A rescue I got as a disabled, unbalanced, and ginger kitten. He deserves a place he can safely navigate in his golden years.

Nubby (8): Bless her evil little Bombay-mixed heart. She is also disabled with a genetically disjointed, shortened tail that makes her ornery, but when she comes to me, she is a total chatty catty.

The COVID Triplets (6): Dumped as a ding-dong-ditch during the pandemic, these three are my lifelines:

Dewy (aka Little): A tuxedo who is so attached that she develops psychogenetic alopecia when stressed. Because of this eviction, she has started to mow her fur again.

Hewy (aka Fatty): My purring weighted blanket. She lives to sit on my chest and keeps me breathing deep when the panic sets in.

Louie -aka Judgy McJudgerton, has a RBF that makes Scarlett O'Hara seem like a smiling fool. He just…stares and loves on me hard when I am too hyper focused.

Tessa (10): This whole ragtag group is completed by our Pittie-mix pup. She is also a rescue, a cream ginger who had been over-bred and dumped twice before I saw her, silent and still in the Marion, OH, shelter cage. She had given up. Can not let this happen to her again.

I am this whole pack’s haven, and they are my world, and it shatters me that we are in this situation. A temporary rental or shelter with another landlord is completely off the table—our collective mental health can not take the stress of another landlord or more moves.

We need a safe, stable environment. We need a permanent, independent home of our own, and I am aiming for a modest, realistic property in the $50,000 to $65,000 range where we can never face this terror again.

Our Strict, Transparent Recovery Plan

Because I am managing a major health recovery alongside severe migraines, my physical turnaround times will fluctuate, but we will start brainstorming immediately.

I am on fixed SSI ($994/month), making it impossible to save my way out of this crisis alone. Welcome to what happens when trauma smacks into OCPD: I have built a strict, fully transparent, strategic recovery plan using the exact legal tools provided by the government to help people with disabilities survive.

Every single penny raised here is mapped out publicly for total transparency, not only to protect us, but also as a way to perhaps help others along the way.

The First $2,000 (Immediate Tools & Survival MAXIMUM):

This baseline funds my immediate physical and tech survival based on the exact itemized replacement costs of my destroyed lifelines. It clears my -$250 bank overdraft fees (caused to make sure the furbabies were taken care of and for some medical and toiletries needed).

The rest goes straight to replacing the core tools I need to do my work: a comparable $700-900 computer system, a $70 drawing tablet, and a $250 sublimation printer so I can get back online and find access to resources. Please note: This $2,000 is the absolute hard ceiling based on this real gear math. I did not just pick this number because it matches the standard SSI resource limit.

I am framing this campaign to show others in similar situations exactly how to navigate real recovery costs. If I find sales or slash these immediate gear costs even further, every single leftover penny rolls straight into our home fund.

The Remaining $5,000+ (The STABLE Account & Home Buying):

To protect my SSI benefits, all surplus funds beyond my immediate gear and survival needs will go directly into a state-regulated Ohio STABLE Account. This money will sit untouchable in that protective pool until the exact moment I sign the closing papers on our permanent home.

This Is a Collaboration, Not a Handout

As I said, I am not comfortable taking without giving back. The collaborations here serve as my way of awarding your heroism, and also as a vital mental distraction to help my mind heal.

Dive into the collaborative levels below to see how we can create new, beautiful worlds together!

THE WISHLIST FOOTER

Want to Help but Uncomfortable With Direct Cash?

I completely understand and appreciate you! I have built a public Amazon Wishlist featuring everyday essential furbaby items, treats for them and me, with a main focus on the furbabies—all priced under $30.

Helping me cover these basic daily needs frees up my mental bandwidth and immediate resources so I can focus entirely on savings and working with you for our collaboration.

How to get your Thank You:

When checking out, please include your name and contact email in the Amazon gift message box! That way, I can ensure we connect and find a special way to say thank you for your kindness.

KNOW THIS: Your contribution isn't just money or stuff.  It is also your faith and belief in me, something I take most sincerely and seriously.

You will see exactly what happiness and stability your help brings to our lives through pictures, receipts, virtual tours, and public financial updates. Hell, if you live near where I end up or are willing to travel, you can come to the housewarming party, and we can hang IRL!

Together, we can not only move mountains, but shake the bloody earth herself.

 AMAZON WISHLIST LINK HERE

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/NGEZ5M8MJ2NW?