Set as Homepage - Add to Favorites

日韩欧美成人一区二区三区免费-日韩欧美成人免费中文字幕-日韩欧美成人免费观看-日韩欧美成人免-日韩欧美不卡一区-日韩欧美爱情中文字幕在线

【?? ?? ???】No Longer Homeless, But Still Cautious

By J.K. YAMAMOTO,?? ?? ??? Rafu Staff Writer

All things considered, Meg Shimatsu is in a better place than she was three years ago, when she was living in her car. But her medical issues remain, and she must be extra careful because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meg Shimatsu

In 2017, she became known throughout the Southland when Los Angeles Times?columnist Steve Lopez told her story. A year later, Shimatsu had a room in a town house in Pasadena.

As a result of coverage by The Timesand The Rafu,?many Japanese Americans responded to her plight.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Shimatsu went to Belmont High School and majored in English at Cal State Northridge.

“I became homeless when the landlord increased the rent and my only income was medical disability,” Shimatsu recalled. “My roommate became ill and eventually passed away. For a while I lived in motels, but that became too expensive so I decided to live out of my car.

“I parked in the parking lot of the hospital [in Glendale] where I received my dialysis treatments three times a week. The security personnel saw me but said nothing. I assumed they knew I was a patient of the hospital. It was safe and I never had problems.

“My family offered to help, but my uncle and aunt are elderly with health issues. It took a while to ask for help due to embarrassment on my part.”

She actually got used to sleeping in her car, first a 1990 Toyota Corolla and later a 2002 Toyota Camry, and felt more fortunate than those living on the streets.

“Eventually a friend of mine told me about an organization called The Women’s Room in Pasadena, which is a nonprofit that assists homeless women,” Shimatsu said. “It took a while, but they eventually secured low-income housing for me.

“I’ve been in this apartment for two years. It’s nice. I have several roommates.”

Garden adjacent to the townhouse where Shimatsu now lives.

The house is for five women, who all get their own bedrooms and share the kitchen, living room and bathroom. Shimatsu uses part of her disability income to pay the subsidized rent.

Founded in 2007, The Women’s Room describes itself as “the only organization in the San Gabriel Valley dedicated to serving women who are alone and homeless or at risk of homelessness. It is a daytime refuge known for wrapping its arms around the 20 to 35 women who come through the door each day, making them feel whole and appreciated …

“Guests with or without shelter say TWR gives them strength and means to persevere. The program includes supportive services and basic needs: a shower, laundry and healthy food. In addition, women enjoy access to computers and telephones, a place to nap, arts and crafts, nature and cultural field trips, games and fresh clothing. They look forward to the monthly professional hair styling, chair massage and birthday celebrations. Through individual attention and educational and recreational programs, women begin making choices to improve their lives.”

Shimatsu continues to seek donations for a kidney transplant through her Go Fund Me page. “I’ve been on dialysis since 2012. I’m also homeless and living out of my car,” she wrote in 2017. “Disability is my only source of income. My treatments are 3x a week for four hours at DaVita. It can leave me tired and exhausted on dialysis days. I have my good and bad days. It would be difficult to work a full-time job due to my schedule and how well I feel, which depends day to day.

“I started this GoFundMe campaign to help for expenses relating to transplant surgery and a used car to help me go to my various doctor’s visits. I’ve been told that transplant medication is costly and may not be 100% covered by insurance. My car is quite old and may not last much longer. I’m on a transplant list and in Los Angeles County the wait can be as long as ten years.

“To say I’m on borrowed time is an understatement. Eventually I’d like to move into a permanent apartment and live an independent life. Any amount would help my situation. Thank you in advance.”

She has already surpassed her initial goal of $10,000 and contnues to post updates on her situation.

These days, she only leaves home for dialysis treatments and weekly trips to the market.

“During this coronavirus, I’m especially vulnerable and take extra precautions,” Shimatsu said. “I always wear a mask when I venture outside … I need assistance towards Lyft and food expenses, but I’m still hanging in there.

“I wanted to thank the Japanese American community for their love and support. It really means so much to me.”

0.1506s , 9783.9375 kb

Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【?? ?? ???】No Longer Homeless, But Still Cautious,Public Opinion Flash  

Sitemap

Top 主站蜘蛛池模板: 四房色播网址 | 精品久久人人爽天天玩人 | 精品成人18av在线 | 亚洲精品国产乱码AV在线观看 | 黄网站免费线观看免费 | 精品无码不卡在线播放 | 亚洲 日本 中文字幕 制服 | av岛国小电影在线观看 | 久久久久99这里有精品10 | 精品视频一区二区三三区 | 亚洲精品久久无码AV片俺去也 | 大尺度很黄很肉的小说 | 午夜精品成人一区二区视频 | 精品国产一区二区三区四区在线看:武器装备多样 | 一个人免费视频在线观看www | 日本久久道一区二区三区 | 国产精品成人影院在线观看 | 在线免费观看国产视频 | 久久精品免费无码区 | 国产精品成人无码a片免费网址 | 99久久免费国产 | 91精品一区二区三区在线 | 黄色一级片在线播放 | 亚洲av无码成人精品区国产 | 国产无遮挡又黄又爽又色 | 麻豆久久精品国产亚洲av小说 | 免费观看中文字幕午夜理论 | 青草视频网站 | 亚洲国产精品一区第一页 | 久久久久国产精品免费免费搜 | 精品国产乱码久久久久久乱码 | 久久婷婷五月国产色综合 | 久久久久无码精品国产av蜜桃1 | 国产v亚洲v天堂无码精品 | 国产三级高清视频在线观看 | 精品人妻无码在线小视频 | 2024国产精品自在自线 | 国产又色又爽又黄的网站在线一级 | 丁香五月天享婷婷在线观看 | 97超级碰碰人妻中文字幕 | 欧美成人免费观看久久 |