Help a Single Mom Turn Grief into a Healing Journey
My Travel Story
Hi, my name is Cara. I'm a 33-year-old single mom with two beautiful daughters and one big dream: to turn a retired school bus into a home and a healing sanctuary on wheels.
But this is not just a dream of travel. This is about breaking a cycle, reclaiming peace after unimaginable loss, and showing my daughters that we are not defined by our pain we are reborn by it.
Why I’m Asking for Your Help
2023 was the year that shattered me.
I became a single mother (abandoned during pregnancy).
I cared for my mother through liver failure, only for her to fall back into addiction.
I was nearly dragged by her car in a moment of intoxicated chaos.
I lost my father… then months later, my mother… and almost my own will to keep going.
I had to send my oldest daughter to live elsewhere just to survive.
I searched the streets of California to find my missing brother homeless and hungry.
And through it all, I carried grief, shame, silence, and two daughters who still needed me to stand.
Yet here I am. Still standing. Still dreaming.
Why the Skoolie Matters
This bus isn’t just about van life or Instagram photos.
It’s about finally choosing myself after a lifetime of putting everyone else first.
It’s about creating:
A safe, warm space for my girls and me.
A mobile classroom, therapy room, and sanctuary.
A home where we can chase sunsets and peace instead of trauma.
A way to show my daughters that you can rise from ashes and still build beauty.
It’s about proving to them and to myself that after everything we’ve survived, we are allowed to live, not just survive.
What Your Donation Will Do
Your contribution will help us:
Buy a school bus or shell ($5,000–$10,000)
Convert it into a safe, livable space (build materials, insulation, plumbing, solar)
Ensure road readiness (mechanical work, tires, brakes, registration)
Create a simple, sustainable off-grid life
Give my daughters a stable home wherever we go
Every dollar brings us closer to freedom. To healing. To home.
Why Support Us?
Because somewhere in your story, you might know what it feels like to:
Be invisible
Carry the weight of everyone else
Keep going when your heart is breaking
Want something more for your kids than what the world has offered you
And maybe, like me, you believe that some stories deserve a second chance.
If You Can’t Donate… Please Share
Every share is a heartbeat closer to our new life.
Every kind word reminds me that people still care.
And every single dollar matters.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you. For seeing us. For believing in our road ahead.
— Cara
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Donate
$ 0 USD
Total Donation Received-
0%
Funded -
$ 30,000 USD
Goal Amount -
56
Days Left
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Cost Calculator
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Local Travel Expenses
$ 30,000
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Donor Rewards
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10 USD
Be part of our journey — your name will be added to a special mural inside our skoolie
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25 USD
Receive a heartfelt photo postcard from our travels with a personal note
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30 USD
We’ll send you a sweet photo of us holding a custom thank-you sign with your name
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75 USD
Get an exclusive PDF photo journal of how we built our skoolie, our story, and the beautiful moments
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150 USD
We’ll record a warm, genuine thank-you video with all three of us sending love
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250 USD
Suggest a place for us to visit! We’ll make a memory there in your honor and send you a story or photo from the stop
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