'Keeping Hope Alive’ | The community of EAV pulls together once again after the unimaginable happens to a cherished neighbor
Months after the shocking eviction of longtime EAV resident, Cynthia Grayson, her son Micheal struggles to find answers — but he’s not alone.
EAST ATLANTA, ATL. — Legacy resident. Mother. Stage 4 Cancer Patient. Senior Citizen. Evictee.
If you bristled at that last word, that is probably because it shouldn’t be there. Even as I am writing this, I freely admit that I am ill-equipped to understand the social-economic arithmetic required to arrive at such a conclusion — yet here we are.
Based on what felt like ‘common best practices’ regarding certain high-risk segments of the population, such as being a senior or having a severe pre-existing health condition, would have offered Grayson or ‘Ms. Cynthia’ to local friends and neighbors some sort of reprieve from something as catastrophic as eviction.
On Tuesday, June 29th, a concerned EAV resident and family of the Grayson family, Melissa Westbrook simply posted the following message on one of the neighborhood’s most active community groups, East Atlanta Neighborhood Group, whose current membership tops at roughly 7.1K followers.
“Our neighbor down the street, Ms. Cynthia, is in a really terrible situation and needs support. I’m posting this with permission from the family. I hope we can help.”
With the continued effort of a small of fellow neighbors and community-centric business owners, a GoFundMe page was created and shared with residents of EAV and the surrounding communities.
The page simply titled, ‘Keep Cynthia in Safe Housing During Illness’ has raised a substantial amount through its community-driven crowdsourcing.
Upon discovering Westbrook’s online post throughout the day, sympathetic residents even reached out to Vox Pop ATL with the hope of spreading awareness outside of EAV.
A fellow longtime resident, Westbrook was compelled to find some way to assist her neighbor and friend whatever was she could. Always ensuring to stay respectful of the family’s ’more delicate’ information while she moderates the fundraising page.
When asked why she decided to step up and help in getting things organized, Westbrook simply had those to say.
“This is a community of people who care about each other. We have loved this neighborhood a long time and our neighbors are really an important part of our lives.”
Vox Pop ATL also had the opportunity to speak with a member of the Grayson family, Ms. Cynthia’s son, Michael. The soft-spoken mechanic shares some information about his and his mother’s experience.
“I’ve been a resident of East Atlanta Village since 1998. Graduated high school here, I never really left,” recounts Grayson. “I’ve always been kind of taking care of my mom and the house.”
“Hopefully, we can regain the home and get back a lot of what we lost. I want to thank my neighborhood for the help and the support, I appreciate it.”
With another moratorium set to kick again soon, maybe something will develop that allows that to happen.
In the meantime, Vox Pop ATL wanted to provide residents and other interested parties, a quick reference guide for sites regarding the upcoming moratorium and how it differs, (if at all) from its predecessor. Also included are websites for legal aid, and rental assistance:
Georgia Rental Assistance Program
Georgia Court Eviction Status
Georgia Utility Assistance Programs
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Legal Services Corporation (LSC)
Emergency Bans on Evictions and Other Tenant Protections Related to Coronavirus
For more information about the, ‘Keep Cynthia Safe’ GoFundMe page as well as any updates, click here, and to learn more about the East Atlanta Community Association and other community news, click here.
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