Hi everybody, I hope you are all having a great start to the year!
I don't have much to update you on. With the deadline of April 1st fast approaching, I am doubling my fund raising efforts. My mom is still spending most of her time on the job hunt, and doing any freelance work she can find. She is still finding that her 30+ years in hotel sales and catering puts her in the over-qualified category. If anyone has any advice or job leads, let me know. Mom is great with sales, catering, convention services, wedding planning, and the list goes on. As usual, every dollar and penny count, and you can refer to the P.O. box address below to mail a donation. Please save this page...regardless of what happens with my mom's home, I plan to continue raising funds for folks in similar situations. Thank you all so much for reading!

Here is a long awaited update....First and foremost, the generosity and thoughtfulness of everyone has been amazing. Thank you all so much for your prayers, notes and help. I hope everyone had a blessed holiday. The good news is mom has been given a reprieve until April first, meaning the foreclosure has been temporarily suspended. The bad news is.....it is likely she will owe a balloon payment at that time. The current figure is $10,000. While this is a shocking number; this website and the kindness of everyone that has donated gives me an immense amount of hope. To date, this website has raised $1213.09! (the .09 is due to the paypal fees) For anyone wondering, the funds are going into a special bank account I have set up, then made in payments directly to the mortgage company. I have also rented a P.O. box for any who would rather mail a donation:

Foreclosuresave c/o J. Holcombe
P.O. Box 5783
Winston-Salem, NC 27113

Just remember, EVERY PENNY HELPS...AND IS APPRECIATED!

On a separate note, I've been doing a lot of research on becoming an official non-profit. Unfortunately I need at least two years of financial records...so sorry guys, this is not tax deductible. On the bright side, by then my mom's issue will be resolved and hopefully many others will have benefited. If you have any info or advice on that topic please let me know. As usual, thank you for reading. Let me know if you have any: questions, thoughts, suggestions. And again, THANK YOU! You have no idea how much the altruism of others has affected me, and will soon affect my family.

Please help if you can

As many of us know, foreclosure is becoming a serious problem. With mounting job loss, increased difficulty obtaining credit and growing debt;many families are in trouble.

My family is one of those. Those of you that are close to me know that it took a lot of thought and consideration to reach the point of asking for this kind of help. My moms house is one of those at risk. It was purchased by my grandparents in the 60's and has always been a wonderful home to all of us off and on through the years. In the late 90's it was remortgaged for a renovation it desperately needed.

Unfortunately, due to unemployment and mounting bills my mom is now holding things together by a thread. She has always been super woman-providing for everyone and always doing whatever it took to make sure we all had what we needed. Through the extended illness of both my grandparents and their eventual passing, money trouble big or small and various other family crises, she has always found a way. Even through this difficult time, there is always a place at her table for anyone that may stop by. Her strength and optimism continue to amaze me. She is constantly on the job search, constantly looking for new solutions...and constantly running into roadblocks and difficulties. Many people think if you're in this situation, you must not be trying hard enough. I am learning first hand that this is untrue. There are "help" organizations, but it seems they are extremely difficult to get that help from. My mom is the best person I know. She has spent my entire life thinking of and taking care of people other than herself. I want to try and provide her with some help now. I wish I could do more, but unfortunately I am stuck with my own rent. We are all pouring our pennies together, but it just seems futile. It is time to take action!

Any little bit will help. I know many of us are not in a place to donate money, if you are; click on the donate button and if not; thank you for reading and please pass this on.

If we are able to meet my mom's need: i.e. if this is successful-I would like to keep it running, donating all additional funds to other families in need; either directly or through an assistance organization.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, feel free to leave them. Just remember to include an email address if you would like me to get back to you.

Thank you sooo much for taking the time to read this. Please pass it on.