Update(January 17th, 2024):

Desperately seeking help making home ADA accessible for Dad. Time is running out!

The goal of this fundraiser is to help make my parent's run-down house ADA accessible and ultimately help repair/rebuild as much as possible to help my elderly parents live a better life and give me peace of mind. I'm also hoping that this fundraiser might encourage my dad to stop worrying about the medical cost and just go see a doctor ASAP!

Here are some photos that help explain my goal: https://imgur.com/a/e3aXVn5

I have updated the goal of this fundraiser from $100,000, to $10,000, and now down to a more feasible goal of $2000, with the hopes that this new goal can be more easily reached, but anything helps.
 

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Desperately seeking help making home ADA accessible for Dad. Time is running out.

I have been desperately seeking a way to rebuild my parents house the past few years and more so after a tree damaged it 3 years ago. I am so stressed out, it is affecting my health and everyone else's too. Everyone is on edge and overwhelmed, it's affecting our togetherness as a family. We are breaking apart. This crappy house remains a disaster and I am penniless, hopeless, and worthless. I was diagnosed with a heart condition a couple years ago and because of that I've foolishly wasted over $20,000 on medical bills for it and all the other stupid medical issues I've been dealing with the past couple years. I was stupid and should have just used the funds on the house, instead of on myself. I would be far less stressed out than I am right now.

I'm sorry for being so gloomy, I just feel so hopeless, I haven't even felt like getting out of bed the past few days… we are currently in the middle of a major ice storm in our area and we haven been able to leave the house since Friday. It's gotten as cold as 49°F in my room and possibly even colder as I slept. We are all bundled up and dad is sick and hasn't hardly left the couch. He also has a major ear infection this weekend and just isn't himself. I might try venturing out on the ice to go to work tomorrow, but I'm still miserable. 

It would cost over $100,000 to do the necessary repairs to this house and I am unable to provide any of it as I should be. $100,000 is an unreasonable amount of money, so I have no option but to scale back the home repair dreams, and I'm instead seekling the minimal help of $2000 to get the house set up so it can accommodate dad's rapid deterioration. $2000 will do nearly nothing to make this house safe and functional, but it's at least a start.

Our situation has gotten worse over the past few months. Dad is losing the ability to walk and function properly, yet refuses to seek medical care to determine why or at least figure out a way to slow the physical deterioration. A family “friend” saw dad's physical deterioration recently and along with the state of deterioration of the structure of the house, has threatened to submit abuse claims against my mom unless she forces dad to schedule a doctor's visit (even though mom has tried so many times already). Unfortunately, that threat would not persuade him, so I'm not sure what the future holds if the “friend” continues with her threat, considering mom can't persuade him any differently than anyone else. This “friend” even went so far as to inform our pastor and bunch of other people, in an effort to “spread awareness” to the people around us. This "friend” won't see reason or leave us alone. Absolutely mind boggling. I've reached my breaking point, I can't live with this stress being added to the stress I already have. We need help!

Dad is finding it harder and harder to walk every day, so I need to make this house ADA accessible, ASAP. Dad trips over these uneven and rotting/collapsing floors, narrow walkways/hallways, and any bump, hump, or piece of gravel outside. It also now takes him over 1 hour to get in the old cast iron bathtub on his own, and refuses help. He can't walk in town or around the house without the use of a shopping cart, shelves to grab onto, or walls to lean on. Dad refuses to use a cane or walker because “it gets in the way” and wont use an electric scooter because he is “still mobile”. Walkers wont even fit down the hallway anyway because the hallway is too narrow. So instead, he grabs onto things that can't even support him, and has dumped over shelves and broken things multiple times lately. While walking unassisted in an open area, he stumbles around as if he is wearing beer goggles or something. His face and body is covered with bruises, scabs, and dried blood. He refuses to go see a doctor about his worsening symptoms because “they can't help” him and “it's too expensive”. He gets angry easily, yells, and has emotional outbursts for no reason because he cant seem to get the proper words out anymore, or walk and function unassisted anymore and is frustrated with himself. This isn't like him, something is wrong. He has no idea what is wrong and refuses to get it figured out and refuses to listen to reason. So at this point I don't see him living much longer, even though he is only 73. 

Because this house isn't ADA accessible or mobility device friendly. I'm seeking help making it more accessible. The bare minimum that needs done in my opinion, is to do the following tasks one at a time as the need gets more desperate and as I can afford each task. This is what little we can afford to do at this point, and a task I can more easily do on my own or with minimal help from others. I will be off work for a week in the beginning of February, so I need to get started right away so I can get as much done as possible while I'm available. I have very little hands-on experience with this on my own, besides what little I've learned from my dad. But since my dad has experience, I'm hoping he can guide me enough through online tutorials and some books I bought.

February's Projects:

1: Our full bathroom has an old cast iron tub. Since I am unable to remove the old tub on my own to install the shower stall we bought several years ago (its not ADA, so it's unusable now anyway), I'm hoping to build a wooden “bench” that I can screw to the bathroom wall with a hinge of some sort. That way it could be lifted up out of the way, or laid down so it “rests” on the top edges of the tub. This would give dad something to sit on so he can lift his legs over the edge and slide into the tub to take a shower.

2: No walker or wheelchair will fit down the hall or into any of the bathrooms. I'm wondering about tearing out or modifying part of the wall that is shared with the tiny half bathroom to widen the narrow space. This will probably eliminate the bathroom door, but necessary to give better walker/wheelchair access down the hall and into the bathroom. For privacy, I would need to either use a curtain or find an accordion closet door that fits. The ceiling in this tiny bathroom collapsed last year. I will need some OSB to screw to the ceiling to keep out the cold draft and so the heat doesn't escape into the attic. For extra width in this hallway, I will also remove all of the built-in cabinets that are on the opposite side of the hallway. Eliminating these cabinets will require the purchase of a small outdoor shed to store our canned goods and other pantry and lining closet items. That part of the ceiling will also need some OSB to cover the holes where the cabinets were.

3: There has also been a discussion about installing an ADA shower unit in the tiny half bath. Originally there was an old built-in clawfoot tub in there. One wall was literally built over the top of one end of the tub because of the lack of space. A mini shower unit will fit in the empty space where the tub was, unfortunately, the ADA shower unit is well over the $2000 that I'm hoping to raise. This will only be possible if I'm able to find a cheap shower unit at the local scrap yard or on Marketplace. 

4: Dad has been tripping over the hearth around the wood stove nearly every day. So far he hasn't burned himself but that day will come sooner than later. I need to rent or borrow a concrete saw to cut the hearth down to a smaller size. Then I'm hoping to buy some pipe and flanges to screw to the floor to Jimmy-rig up a railing that wraps around one or two sides of the hearth/fireplace, to give dad a sort of railing that he could grab onto so he doesn't accidentally grab onto the stove when he falls again.

These 3-4 simple projects will be a small benefit to help dad get through his deterioration and minimize major injuries. I'm also hoping to purchase another bucket of roofing tar and figure out how to patch the roof on my own to stop the living room leak before dad tries climbing the ladder again. Wrong time of year at the moment, but hopefully sooner than later, before another part of the ceiling collapses again.

I Know these "fixes” sound absolutely ridiculous,  but since I can't even afford a $100,000+ repair bill and insurance gave us pocket change for repairs after the tree fell on the house, this is the best I could come up with that wouldn't break the bank. I pay so much of my own medical bills right now, I can't save up enough to do these ridiculously simple projects. If anyone is willing to help, I assume $2000 might cover some or part of these projects. If not, I could at least use all the thoughts and prayers you've got, as we try to figure out this mess.

The biggest blessing and dream would be to be able to tear down this older portion of the house and just rebuild it instead of these ridiculously stupid temporary “fixes”, but I have no other options. This section is rotten all the way from the floor joists to the roof. None of it is structurally sound and none of it is repairable. I can't afford any of this work on my own, and what little roof funds the insurance company allotted for repairs, wouldn't even touch the cost of roof repairs after the tree fell on the house 3 years ago. Even some of those repairs are yet to be done. I would give my life away if it meant this project was funded, I would be absolutely grateful for that gift of a new life for my parents. For now, I would be grateful even for the $2000 to fund the ADS accessibility project that I need to start right away. I'm so, so sorry to ramble on like this, but I'm so stressed out, I will be so grateful for whatever can be done,  no matter how much. Thank you all for your help!

---^^^‐‐‐ Update posted above ---^^^---

Help my broken heart fix an unhealthy home.

Here are some photos that help explain the story below: https://imgur.com/a/e3aXVn5

I'm getting a heart procedure done on march 8th and I'm nervous and super stressed out. I had so many things I needed to get done but got very little accomplished. I've been just too exhausted. I'm realizing I can't do everything by myself so I am seeking a bit of help so I can afford to hire out a few projects and maybe get some other much needed repairs completed.

A bit of back story: I've been dealing with some heart and hypertension complications that have turned my life upside down for over a year. I was rushed to the ER again a couple months ago and was scheduled for a cardiac ablation. Even though this is a "safe & effective" procedure, it still has me stressed out in more ways than one. This procedure comes with some risks, including the possibility of a pacemaker. Even though I have insurance, it's going to be pretty expensive with such a high deductible. I've already lost half of my savings last year paying medical bills and this upcoming procedure will wipe out the rest of what little is left. On top of this, I was just recently forced into a leave of absence from work because I "need to get better first" which leaves me with no way to pay for this procedure and other expenses. I currently have $6000 left to my name, which is not enough to even pay for this procedure or even last year's medical bills. But that's not what troubles me the most right now.

At this point, I could care less about myself, I'm not important, I would rather find the comfort in knowing my parents are taken care of. I've taken care of them to the best of my ability for several years, now the tables have turned and they are taking care of me too. They have been a blessing and a comfort for me lately and I would like to return the favor in whatever way I can, to help relieve a burden in their lives. For starters, I would like to help rebuild the front porch so we can get rid of the tarp lean-to before my procedure (I'm tired of ducking under it) and maybe get a few other smaller projects done. Anything above and beyond what is needed currently would help get some much needed repair work done on this miserable house too.

Anything above and beyond, will help me help my parents rebuild their damaged, unsafe home. Dad has been disabled for years and started battling a severe infection over a year and a half ago. It took the hospital over 6 months last year, before they could schedule his urgent surgery, all delayed because of the Covid pandemic. It's been over a year and he still isn't doing well, is not acting like himself, and can barely walk and function. Words and sentences are sometimes difficult. He is trying to repair the house by himself because he is too stubborn to sit down or quit and he can't afford to hire anyone. He trips and falls almost every week. I don't like seeing him up on the roof or around the uneven ground as wobbly as he is, yet he keeps pushing himself into exhaustion every day.

The house is poorly built and has been deteriorating for years, but it got worse in January 2021 when they had a huge tree fall on the house during a freak wind storm. It was followed by a severe ice storm that fell more trees and rained branches and debris all over their property. Insurance paid very little towards repairs because of the pre-existing condition of the house(my grandparents and later my parents could only get "actual cash value" coverage on the house), so dad planned on cutting costs and repairing it himself. This past year alone, my parents have spent nearly $7000 to replace their broken pump and water tank after a sudden loss in pressure, over $800 in emergency vet bills after their dog gashed her back open on unknown debris, $4000+ for multiple appliances that were fried, and much more. Unfortunately, due to financial strain, severe medical issues requiring future surgery, and seemingly everything going wrong around the house, dad was unable to do the necessary roof repairs over the dry summer. I've helped the best I can and paid for multiple projects, replacement parts & building materials. But my own medical bills are bleeding me dry, too.

We have had tremendous support from friends as well. Last year, after heavy rains poured through the tree damaged ceiling, flooding the kitchen and bathroom, a few wonderful friends spent a couple days helping dad replace all of the broken rafters and joists, patching the sheathing, and drying in and replacing that portion of the roof. Getting this crucial step done will help stretch what little money insurance has paid towards the damage. The next step is to buy and install new siding, gut and repair the ceiling and walls in the kitchen and bathroom, and make other repairs in the damaged portion of the house. This leaves the old deteriorating portion of the house untouched. This portion is currently leaking, causing ceiling damage and collapse in multiple places.

I would like to take the repairs a step farther and help them extend the work by replacing the rest of the old roof and rebuilding the rest of the house into one that will no longer be a health and safety issue, plus one that is more manageable for dad and his disability and instability. Some minor repairs have been made to the house, but the oldest portion has the worst of it, and needs to be rebuilt.  Along with replacing this portion of the roof, we need to replace subfloors so the floor is flat and bow-free, wider hallways, and doorways that can be better managed with his future and current need for canes, walkers and wheelchairs. They don't need anything fancy, just a house that is safer, warmer, more manageable, stress free, and that they can finally grow old and relax in. 

Raising these funds would help dad and I hire contractors to do the work that he really shouldn't be doing in his condition(and mine!). Getting extra help rebuilding the house will speed things up during this miserably cold weather. It was 52°F in the kitchen the other day!  I try to help the best I can, as often as I can, but I can't afford to do much anymore. Their house isn't safe and should have been condemned decades ago, but it's all they have. Critters and rodents have flooded through the holes in the roof and walls over the summer with no end in sight as the colder weather draws more in. I hate to see them live like this, so repairs are of high priority right now. $10,000 won't go far, but it's a helpful start. Thank you!