I'm raising money for a mattress so I can have a separate bed for my daughter and I.

Why I'm using HandUp for a mattress.

My name is Melani Gomez. I live with my 8 year old daughter Jennifer. I am trying to raise this money so I can purchase Jennifer a mattress. Right now we are sleeping in the same bed. Jennifer is growing up, and it's getting harder for us to share the same bed as she gets bigger. Jennifer loves to play with our dogs, watch TV, and have her own space to draw and make art. We live in a studio apartment, so there is not very much room, but I would like her to have her own little space that she can call her own. I am currently going to college to get my AA in child development, and work my way up to become a teacher. I am also working at the same time, and it would be so helpful for me to raise this money so that I can have my own bed to sleep on too. I would be so grateful for any help that you can give to me.

About me.

My name is Melani Gomez and I was born in Guatemala City. I moved here in 1995 when I was 7 years old with my mother. I lived in San Francisco for most of my childhood life. Recently I moved to Concord. Currently I am a student at City College of San Francisco. I am pursuing a degree in child development. I want to get my associates from City College of San Francisco and transfer to San Francisco State University to get my Bachelors in Child Development. Most of my time is spent on doing my homework and helping my daughter with her school work. Also, I enjoy reading books.

My backstory.

I have always wanted to be an independent person, so after I graduated from high school I moved out of my moms house to live on my own. I worked for five years in different fields such as retail, care giver, cashier, and janitorial. I tried my best to make life work with what I had in my hands. Life took a different route when I got pregnant, and to take responsibility for both my daughter and I. I had to moved back to my moms house when I was five months pregnant. She supported me in her best way; however, I had to move out when my daughter was two years old because my moms house got sold. I was forced to find a living, so I found a room for rent with ten other people. I tried to better my living condition by going back to school , so I attended Bryman College for a dental assistant certificate. However, the college shut down in 2014 before I got the chance in completing my certificate. My living situation was getting harder as my daughter, Jennifer, was getting older so I applied to Compass Family services, SF HOME. I found hope after I applied to SF HOME, because I was able to find an apartment where I can live independently with my daughter. Although I am living in Concord I am still commuting back to San Francisco to pursing my goal of getting a Bachelors degree in child development. Currently, I am a single mother of a beautiful girl named Jennifer. I like to spend time with my daughter and go to the park and at night I read her a book. Also, I like to listen to music and cook for her in my free time.

My goals, moving forward.

Currently I am trying to find a job in the child development field because I want to prepare myself and gain experience in working with children. I plan on obtaining an Associate degree in Childhood Development from City College of San Francisco. Hopefully I will be able to complete my Bachelors degree from San Francisco State University in four years. My goal in life is to be able to buy my own home for my daughter, my dogs and I.

Other things I'd like to share about myself.

I am proud of where I am right now, all the experiences that I've went through are proof how how strong I can be. Life is always going to be a struggle and I am prepared to take that role. I live life to the fullest, like there is no tomorrow, because we do not know what can happen in the future. My proudest moment is the moment today of where I am standing right now and where my journey of life as taken me. Someday in the far future I want to have a big family for Jennifer to have sisters, brothers and a father.