Two things. Both important.

[leahbobet]

"helptheproject is a fandom auction to benefit the Virginia Avenue Project, a free afterschool arts and academics program. 100% of participating children graduate from high school. 95% go on to college. 98% are the first person in their family to go.

"Due to budget cuts, unless we can raise $15,000 by mid-March, we will lose our centerpiece program, the One-on-Ones. In this program, professional actor/writers write a short play to act in with the kid they're paired with, rehearse it with them in a beautiful countryside summer camp, and then return to Los Angeles to put on a show. This program has been running continuously for 20 years - let's not lose it now!"

---

Via asatomuraki:

hominysnark needs a hysterectomy to keep an unpleasant medical condition from becoming a life-threatening one (it's already most of the way there) and she can't, because she doesn't have health insurance.

Why doesn't she have health insurance? Because she's self-employed, and as many self-employed creative people (she's an artist and writer) know all too well, when you have to choose between eating and having a place to sleep or having health insurance, the health insurance loses. I know this, because the hubby and I have been paying for self-employment health benefits for most of this decade, watching the cost go higher and higher while the benefits get lower and lower. We pay more for health insurance than we do for shelter, but live in terror of not having it, just in case. Because not having it could mean complete financial ruin, and destroy our children's future. It's freaking scary.

So, anyway. She needs $2700.00 for the operation, or she has to wait for her condition to become life-threatening. (It will get there long before she could save up that much, especially since she has $8,000.00 in medical bills from just having it diagnosed.) See, she falls in that sweet spot between having enough income to have health insurance or pay for health care herself and being poor enough to qualify for any sort of break from providers or government program.

....

I know that if every one who can will give a buck or two, maybe we can get this thing done before her life is at risk.

Lisa's my friend and has been for years and years. She's an awesome, funny, talented, creative, and wholly decent human being.

If anyone has a couple bucks to throw in to help defray the costs of this surgery, it'd be much appreciated.

Comments

[mekkavandexter.livejournal.com]

thanks for posting that about Lisa, would not have known otherwise.

<3

[hominysnark.livejournal.com]

Dude.

*grabs more Kleenex*

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Pfft. We take care of our monkeys.

<3

[wldhrsjen3.livejournal.com]

I don't mean to be intrusive or obnoxious, but I wanted to share sympathy and support. I had a total hysterectomy in 2003 to save my life. Although Husband and I have health insurance (he's a farmer and I'm a SAHM, so we pay more for insurance than for anything else), my company refused to pay benefits because I was "too young to require a hysterectomy." I was bleeding to death by the time my lawyer, my surgeon, and two doctors could change their minds, and I still had to pay out the wazoo. I'm fine now, of course, but it was a helluva ride there for a while. :/

I am really, really, really sorry you have to go through this. I am sending you good thoughts and will check with Husband to see how much we can donate.

Best wishes for a speedy, smooth resolution and quick recovery.

[hominysnark.livejournal.com]

Not obnoxious at all. Thank you so much for the good wishes!

[mekkavandexter.livejournal.com]

Loffs!

[kats-kradle.livejournal.com]

I wish I could win the lottery and have a 'Save the Day' fund set aside for these sorts of things. :\

I have to wait till the paycheck comes in but we'll put what we can her way then.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

[asatomuraki.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Leah. I regret that my original post sounded so angry, but there you go. :) My reach is pitifully small, and I'm so grateful to you for mentioning it here.

The Virginia Avenue Project sounds incredibly awesome, too.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

I dunno. I think it was just angry enough, personally.

[asatomuraki.livejournal.com]

Well, good. I'm not the best judge of such things at the moment, being a tad under the weather myself. :)

[strayfish.livejournal.com]

My mom just had this surgery, for the same reason, over the summer (was reading another post with more medical details). Thank goodness we live here, 'cause a mountain of medical bills on top of all the lost work hours (she's a self-employed dog walker) would have been our family's ruin.

Will help how I can.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Thank you. It's much appreciated.