The Story of Why My Mom's So Awesome and Why She Needs Our Help

Hi. I'm Katie, and this is my mom, Marilyn:

It's been a hard few years for our family, and throughout it all, my mom has been the glue holding us together, our ultimate supporter, and the sacrifices she's made are staggering. A few years ago, my dad was diagnosed with lung cancer. He had to have several surgeries, and despite aggressive chemo and radiation, it eventually spread to his liver, spine, and brain. We were struggling financially before this, and then my mom became the sole income-earner for the family. The owner was raising the rent on our home, medical bills were piling up, and somehow she still managed to sit with my dad 24 hours a day when he was in the hospital. When he wasn't in the hospital, I drove him to his daily chemo or radiation appointments, but at every major meeting with a doctor, she was by his side. 

Last May, my brilliant, hilarious, wonderful dad passed away. It's difficult to express what a gift it's been to have these two amazing people as parents. My mom had been with my dad for over 30 years, and as profound as my loss has been, I know she has suffered a loss all her own. Yet, somehow, my mom has kept us all going. Her strength and her love are unparalleled. I wish you guys could meet her; you'd definitely agree, she's totally awesome.

But she needs a little help, so I'm reaching out into the world and humbly asking that you join me in helping her. To try to cope with the rapidly rising expenses, my mom and dad took out a loan, which in a beautiful act of kindness her boss and coworker cosigned on. My mom was able to keep up with payments towards the loan for a while, but over time it became more and more difficult. She works 7 days a week to support my little brother and me, and I've never seen her take a vacation. Still, recently, repaying the loan has been nearly impossible. I've taken a leave of absence from college and started working, but it simply hasn't been enough. She worries that soon they will go after the cosigners--her boss and her coworker. This weighs heavily on her, but it's a burden that I know with your help we can lift.


How you can help:

• Visit our Etsy shop Soap Machine Co. Everything is 100% handmade by me with love in my mom's kitchen. New items are always being added, and custom orders are more than welcome! I will try to meet any request. 
• Pass the link to our shop along to anyone you know who likes being clean and smelling delicious.
• If you don't find anything in the shop that you'd like or you'd just rather donate directly, you can use the Paypal donate button below:

On behalf of my mom and our family, to everyone who's taken the time to read through this page and extend your hands and your hearts to us, thank you.