Longtime kossack here and, yes, it has been a very long time since I posted a diary. I did notice y'all have done just fine without my words of wisdom ;-)
But after a long dry spell, I'm writing today because my neighbors and I are trying to save our neighbor's home from the big banks. I'm hoping you can help.
Here's our neighbor Diane...
And here's her story...
Diane is the heart of our Northeast Portland neighborhood, and we really love her.
As one of only two African American families left on our block because of gentrification, Diane is our local historian. She is also our welcoming committee, our block party organizer, our neighborhood patrol, and so much more. We can't even begin to describe what losing her would mean to our community.
Diane has lived in our neighborhood for 30 years. She bought her home in 1981, and in that home she helped raised her nieces, cared for her dying brother, welcomed her parents in their old age and raised her daughter, Gabrielle.
Over the years, her home has also been a shelter to many in need, and her generosity has been endless to those in her family and community. She has put years of time and energy into her home - a new roof, new deck, bathrooms redone, electrical work, paint jobs, etc.
By working hard and playing by the rules, Diane was able to pay off her mortgage in 1996. But then times turned for her. She lost her job at the nursing home where she had been for sixteen years, when new management hired younger workers for less pay. She required hip and knee surgery, only to learn after the fact that her insurance would not fully cover the costs. To pay her medical bills, Diane took out an ARM loan at the height of the real estate boom in 2006. Then the recession hit her hard, and the ARM loan has come back to haunt her.
Diane has yet to find a full-time job with decent pay. To make ends meet, she works very hard at two jobs - one at a Head Start preschool in North Portland and the other teaching water aerobics at our local community pool. But despite all of her hard work, Diane has not been able to catch up or keep up with her house payments. And now, sadly, Diane is about to lose her home.
In response, we neighbors have banded together to help her raise the funds she needs. But we need help, and I'm hoping some of members of the dkos community might be able to help us help Diane.
Here's how:
- Donations. Every dollar helps: www.gofundme.com/dw1s08
- Like and share our FaceBook page. The more people know about it, the better: www.facebook.com/savedianeshome
There are an awful lot of people who need help in this country, but after railing for years against the people in power, we decided that we should start where we are. So this is our effort to save one person's home, by we the people who live next door, up the street, and down the block.
And yes, we know our effort is just one tiny drop of water in an ocean polluted by the likes of Bear Sterns, Bank of America, Country Wide Mortgage, Washington Mutual, Citibank, JPMorgan Chase, and any other big bank you care to name still doling out multimillion dollar bonuses to whichever bankster can skirt SEC rules to bring in a buck, regardless of decency and the common good.
But we have to start somewhere, and Diane needs our help now.
Thanks for reading this.
8:10 PM PT: UPDATE: As of 8:09PM, we are over $,4,000. Whoo hoo! Thanks to any and all who donated. We are on our way.