PLEASE HELP SHANA, IAN, SEAN & BABY JACK!

My best friend, Shana, just moved into a new apartment on September 27th.

On September 30th at 2am (bar time), someone lit the trash can outside her apartment on fire. The flames traveled up the side of the house and into the attic. Everything she owns was either destroyed by fire or water. My friends Sean and Ian lived upstairs.
Everyone is safe and alive - except they can't find the cat.

I set up this temporary page for donations. Shana is 6 months pregnant and just cut hours at work. I know everything will work out, but it doesn't hurt to have people on your side. So please send positive thoughts her and Baby Jack's way. Prayers are best, but money helps too.

Read the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel article HERE.

EDIT: They found Bitey, the cat - terrified but otherwise alright.
Shana was able to salvage some important family heirlooms. Most of her clothes are alright, just soaked. Ian and Sean sustained the most damage - everything is ruined, including clothing. Shana has asked me to let everyone know that the money collected will go towards helping all 3 of them, not just her.

Once they have gotten a chance to survey the damage properly, I will be posting a list of items they all need (since I have had so many questions from people wanting to help).

Thank you so much for your immediate generosity. It is beautiful and amazing to see love and kindness in action, especially from those of you who are strangers. On behalf of Shana, Sean and Ian, I thank you.

EDIT (NOTE FROM SHANA):
As most of you know I am homeless due to a fire on Sepetember 30th. I had just moved into the bottom unit of a 3 unit building. In this building lived the landlord Scott, Myself, Sean (my boyfriend) and his roomie Ian. The fire was started in trash cans around bar time and had it not been for a bartender who walking home we all could be in a much worse situation. No one was hurt.

I feel I was spared in way, It was my unit that seemed to collect all the water as gravity did its thing. The fire spread up my outer wall and into Sean/Ian’s place and over took the attic. I was the 1st one out and witnessed the amazing yet frightening show of flames.(as I was screaming please wake up in the middle of the street) It all happened so fast yet it seemed like forever. I need a visit with my therapist..

Ok so the situation has left us all without many things. People have shown an incredible amount of generosity. There has been cash donations that will help with finding new places. People wanting to feed us, offers for furniture, clothing etc. The thing that has touched me the most is the kind words of support. The hugs, the tears. The people who came out to help up go through the rubble and repack. I mean its been a lesson indeed.

So now what. It is the last morning in the hotel the Red Cross put us up in. Ian is at his folks, Scott is taken care of, Sean is going to his parents in Illinois, Ill be staying in Liv’s basement. Ive taken a personal leave of absence from work so I can get my life back in some kind of order. I need a new place to live and I am done with Riverwest, Im thinking Bayview, Southside. I dont have alot of money as Ive just been dropped down to Pt Time at work in preparation for Jack’s arrival. I not only have to take care the fire stuff but I am also starting the process of getting help from the state on other things. It’s very overwhelming.

Many of you have asked “What can I do?”. Keep praying for us all. That is most important. If you want to help in other ways there is a fund set up through PayPal(link is on my FaceBook page), Giftcards would be nice too even $5. adds up. I realized this morning I have no pillow, it made me so sad.

I am lucky to have my life, the lives of my loved ones and Baby Jack. We will be ok. I have to believe Im being guided in another direction.......Love to you all Shana

Contact info for Now:
My Cell 414 517-6848
Mail- C/O Katherine Scofield 306 E Planfield, Milwaukee, WI 53207


The Greatest Gift Is Love

My Retarded Idea of Fun

I got canceled from the freelance job I had booked Monday, so I decided that leaving for my already-planned Florida trip a little early would be in order. Sunday afternoon, while I was helping Shana move, I got the silly idea that I should drive to Austin first - only because I have never been there and have always wanted to go. I texted my friend Jon to see if he was going to be around if I made the drive and then packed up my car to hit the road.

I have a problem with indecision. I couldn't decide whether to leave Sunday night or Monday morning. I drive better at night, but it was storming. I actually left my house, but came back an hour later because the clouds were looking a bit scary (I was only a couple miles away having tea with a friend before leaving). After my mom poked more fun at me for not ever being able to make up my mind, I left with Austin as my intended destination.

Driving, driving, driving... I didn't realize how far of a drive it was to Texas. I'd never driven there before. I hadn't even made it to Tulsa yet, and I had been in the car for almost 20 hours (granted, I did sleep for 6 of those). I was at another gas station, grumbling about having to fill my tank yet again when I thought "man, this was a really dumb idea." I texted Jon again and told him I was thinking about turning back towards Florida and I would come to Austin a different time. New Orleans seemed like a better idea at that moment. Unfortunately from where I was at, there was not a freeway connecting the two cities. So I mapped out a route on my atlas (yes, I still use my old fashioned paper map - where's the fun in Google maps?) and decided to take a trip through the Indian res. The turnpike cut through some absolutely beautiful land, however it seemed to take me FOREVER to get anywhere.

I got tired again somewhere in Texas (since the only way to Shreveport was through the uppermost eastern part of the Lone Star State) and slept for a couple hours. I made it into Shreveport at about 4am but then got tired again and decided to sleep for another couple hours before the sun baked me in my car.
Absolutely nothing interesting happened that whole trip, except a disgusting restroom (sign on the door read "do not flush toilet paper, put in waste basket" - yes, there was a bunch of poopy toilet paper in the trash) and a trucker honking at me. By the time I got to New Orleans I was so sick of driving, but I knew if I stopped to hang out for a bit it would eat up more time.

I learned on this crazy drive that I actually have physical limits to my driving now. After about 40 hours I started having some anxiety which actually culminated in 2 small panic attacks. Scary shit! I kept telling myself "you can make it, only 8 hours left" and "just keep driving, you'll be in Tampa soon enough." That's when I realized I was treating my trip as though I were running a marathon; which I have no intention of doing. Instead of enjoying my time, I was trudging and forcing myself past my limits. My long trips have always been tempered out before by frequent stops and curiosity. If I saw something interesting, I didn't hesitate to check it out. This was different. This was no good.

So I haven't actually made it to Tampa yet. I'm sitting in a hotel room in Marianna, FL. I'm about 5 hours away but after the second panic attack I decided it was best to just give my body a rest. Maybe next time I won't be so militant with my driving. Or maybe I just won't make completely outrageous plans.