The Homeless Shelters say they have no vacancies . . . The Housing Authority say they have no units available . . . The Division of Children & Families say they can not help with housing or sheltering . . .

THIS IS OUR STORY:

     Although, I was steadily employed in Medical Administration for over thirteen years and my husband in and out of contract work as an IT Consultant, we struggled financially in New Jersey for many years trying to support our two small children. We tried numerously, but were unable to get the necessary assistance from the state that we needed, because they claimed that my income alone was always too much. My brother knew of our situation and although I had lost touch with him for about two years, he insisted on helping us and told us to move in with him.

     I was skeptical and a bit fearful of making the move for a number of valid reasons, but my brother spent over six months convincing us that it would in fact be the best move for our kids and constantly offering to help! He offered to get my husband a job at his company and said that we could stay with him as long as it took for us to get on our feet. Given an offer we could not refuse, relieved that someone offered to help us and desperate, we trusted him and moved into his Florida apartment on August 13, 2009. It was suppose to be the beginning of a new life for us . . . or so we thought.    

     For reasons unknown, he moved out of his own residence a few days later. He claimed that the apartment was now overcrowded, but that he would still come around each day to take my husband to work, which was two and a half hours away on a bus. He left us in the apartment with no food or household necessities, so we had to live off of the little money we had in our savings. On my husbands first day of work, my brother took him there four hours late and continued to do so everyday after that.

     On several occasions my husband did not go to work at all because my brother told us that it was inconvenient for him to pick him up. On those days, without our knowledge, he was telling the boss that my husband just could not make it in, then he would call and tell us that he just would not be coming by at all. To make a long story short, after a mere two weeks at the commissioned based job, in which my husband never made a dime, my husband ended up finding out that the job was illegal and was let go without reason or notice . . . yet, my brother continues to work there.

     On the very same day my husband was fired from the job, my brother came by that night to tell us that he had helped us enough and that we had five weeks to leave the apartment. He and I exchanged a couple of heated words, in regards to the fact that he never told us that the job was illegitimate and me questioning him why we had to leave so suddenly! By this point in time we had already depleted half the funds we had, therefore, we did not have the money necessary to get back to New Jersey and even if we did, we had already given up our home and my job. We would have been left with no where to live and with noone really to turn to . . .

     He does not seem to understand, that had we known any of this, we would of never took him up on his offers. We would have just stuck it out in New Jersey with the little we did have and never of moved to Florida in the first place. He stated that it was none of our business if the job was illegitimate or not, that he said he would get my husband a job and he did! Furthermore, he stated that he had done enough for us is the two week period that we were here. Basically, the ending result of the three hour conversation was the same . . . he still wanted us out in October.

     My brother stated that he was paying the rent for September because he had to, due to being on a lease, but that by October, job or no job, home or no home, children homeless or not, that we still had to be out, so that he could move back in! I just could not fathom why he was doing this to us? We did not ask to come here or ask for his help! He was the one who offered . . . but why offer . . . to do this to us? We may have been living paycheck to paycheck up north, but we still had a home and a job! We gave up the little we did have, based on his word, based on his offerings and hopeful that we would have a better life.

     Throughout the month, we desperately searched for work (which we still have been unsuccessful in obtaining), applied for unemployment (which has been denied), out of desperation applied for state assistance (which is still pending after two months) and all while being verbally harassed by my brother constantly. He repeatedly reminded us of our deadline and repeatedly told us that we had to leave the apartment. He continuously told us how our situation was not his problem, as I just continued to beg him for more time.
    
     After hours of threatening text messages and phone calls, my brother came to the apartment on October 13, 2009 and told us that we had to leave now. I pleaded with him that we had nowhere to go! He left the premises and returned ten minutes later with four officers stating that we did not let him in. The Sheriff’s department basically told us that even though my brother had willingly let us live in his apartment, although he was not staying in it himself and although my family had established residency there, that because my brother was the only person listed on the lease and was breaking his own lease, that we were now considered trespassers and had to leave. We were given the option to either leave willingly or by force.

     So that my brother could end up looking like the good guy to whom ever found out what was going on, he dumped us in a dirty old motel/efficiency for a week and offered my husband another commission job somewhere else. We do not trust accepting this employment from him because of what happened the first time. He told us that we were now on our own and that he was cutting all ties; therefore he would not be accepting any calls from us, or anyone else in our estranged family.

     I told him that we had no money for food so that if he could atleast please leave us something? On the ride to the motel he wanted to make it clear to us that he sleeps just fine at night working at his illegitimate job, stealing from the rich and giving to himself the poor, as he stated. He showed me a four thousand dollar pay stub for that week but left us with thirty. He told us that we should be grateful and appreciative that he was still willing to help us by dumping us in a motel for a week with thirty bucks! Who would think that someone in your own family would do something like this to you . . .    

     We understand that half of america's families are in similar or worse situations then we are in. We posted our story on a blog solely as an attempt to connect with those other familes who understand what we are going through and may be able to provide us with any helpful resources that we may have missed. We thank you for taking the time to listen to our story and we sincerely appreciate any job offerings or suggestions you may have to offer us. Please leave them @

      HTTP://HOMELESS-IN-ORLANDO.BLOGSPOT.COM

      "Our blog was discovered by Reporter Alsy Acevedo, whom chose to meet with us and write about our story in this Saturday's Orlando Sentinel, in hopes that it will assist us in getting the help we so desperately need . . . Thank you Alsy"