A campaign titled “PV Student Being Evicted” was posted on the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe on Dec. 27, 2017, the information detailing a Pascack Valley student who, in about twenty hours, would lose her River Vale apartment unless $2,000 was raised by 4 p.m. the next day.

To ensure the student’s anonymity, the post was written in the third-person, and she wishes to continue to remain unknown to the PV community.

The need for the money developed after the student’s mother fell behind on rent due to her inability to work.

“In late November of 2016, I had a pretty big surgery, and I needed someone to stay home with me,” the student recalled. “My mom had to take off work for three months until I could be more independent, but once she went back to work, she was never able to make enough to start paying the rent back.”

The student said her father, who lives in Hillsdale, helped throughout the months by paying for necessary expenses, but just did not have the kind of money needed to pay off the rent.

“My mom contacted family, but they either responded by saying ‘this is your problem’ or they just flat out said ‘no,’ which is frustrating since they are capable of supporting us financially,” she said.

Taking a “last minute final chance,” she decided to post the GoFundMe campaign.

“I honestly didn’t think it would work,” said the student of her efforts. Just two days later, 80 people donated $3,190, $1,190 over the $2,000 goal.

“Because the money was donated through the Internet, it doesn’t feel real,” she said.

With the money raised, the family can now focus on collecting the extra $4,000 needed by May 2018, according to the campaign. Also, in addition to eviction, serious family issues were also avoided.

“If we got kicked out, we would’ve had to go back to our old house where my dad is living, and since my parents are divorced, that wouldn’t have been healthy for them, and obviously this would have affected me,” she explained.

She decided to post the campaign anonymously, citing unwanted attention and pity as problems she foresaw.

“It’s not something you should be embarrassed about, but then again, it’s not a fact you go around flaunting,” she said of her family’s problems regarding money. “But I thought it was really cool how the community came together to help someone out, regardless of who it was.”

The student has the sincerest gratitude for all the PV students and community members who donated.

“It’s crazy to think that our goal was made; I’m still so in shock,” she said. “I’ll eventually figure out something I can do for everyone who donated, to show how much I appreciate it, but I really can’t say thank you enough.”