On Nov. 2, 2024, band senior Michael Feuerborn woke up to $4,655 in donations.
His father, Christian Feuerborn, had been working as a private chef for a family for over three years, but he was laid off in June with a notice of four days. Since then, Michael said his family faced months of “financial turmoil” as they attempted to avoid homelessness and sustain their lifestyle. While searching for a new job, Mr. Feuerborn said he began to liquidate his family’s assets to try and “stay afloat,” including making lifestyle changes.
“(We) had to cut off a lot of stuff that we used to do,” Michael said. “I wasn’t aware of how bad it was until very recently, but I started seeing the signs when we started cutting down on the normal day-to-day stuff we were doing.”
His father became a deli clerk at BJ’s Wholesale Club on Oct. 14 — providing for a family of four and paying the month’s rent with a wage of $17 per hour.
“We ran out of money,” Mr. Feuerborn said. “(The landlords) called us and told us, ‘Look, we don’t want to do an eviction, (but) we need you out by the 14th (of November).’”
With insufficient funds to pay for their upcoming home rental fee, Mr. Feuerborn said that for the first time in his life, he “didn’t have an answer.” After hearing about Michael’s situation through Instagram story posts, Michael’s classmate and band junior Alexander Sinn suggested starting a GoFundMe page to raise money.
(Betsy Linkhorst)
“I tried to help him, but he didn’t want any outside help,” Sinn said. “I tried to help him set up a GoFundMe page and spread the word, but he was really stubborn. He’s a good guy like that, (and) he didn’t want to make it seem like he was bothered. He tries not to bother people even when it is something serious like this.”
On Oct. 31, after wondering if “people would actually donate,” Michael and his father set up a GoFundMe page titled, “Help Prevent the Feuerborns from Going Homeless.” Although they were $6,500 worth of rent and fees behind, they listed their goal as $300 less than what they needed.
Within 24 hours, they had received 85 donations, enough to repay their debt and payments for the next few months. Many of the donations were from Michael’s bandmates, including band junior Matthew Harper. Michael said he was in “disbelief” because of this since he “never expected that amount of support from everybody around (him).”
“(Michael’s) in my trumpet section, and most of the time when I’m playing trumpet, it’s alongside him,” Harper said. “A lot of times in the band department and in the jazz department, we address each other as family, and this showed that we really mean it when we say that. We have a very close relationship, and he’s very important to me.”
They achieved their set goal in three days with donations from family members, friends across the country, Mr. Feuerborn’s former high school classmates in Pennsylvania, and the school community.
“I started reading through who donated, and I started recognizing (that) almost every single name (was) somebody from school,” Michael said. “That was really the most surreal moment for me because I never really expected it to happen. To be honest, I didn’t know I was liked (by) all my classmates.”
Mr. Feuerborn said he was “in tears” as the donations accumulated; he wrote personalized thank-you notes to everyone who contributed, including members of the school’s orchestra, jazz band, and wind ensembles, as well as to anonymous contributors.
“I put in one (thank-you note), ‘I wish you guys had told me who you were, but we will be forever grateful for your kindness and generosity,” Mr. Feuerborn said. “I thought it was important to do that.”
In the end, the GoFundMe page raised $8,619. Additionally, two real estate agents in their community assisted them in finding a home to rent, and Catholic charities paid their electric bills.
“We’re not going to get back to that point where we can really have that freedom to do what we want, at least not until I graduate, but things have gone better with people’s support,” Michael said.
The school has lent assistance by covering part of Michael’s dues for the year, including funding for Michael’s yearbook, cap and gown, and Prom ticket. The School of the Arts Foundation also covers private music lessons for him, and the jazz and band departments support any school travel expenses.
“My wife and myself work so hard so that (Michael) can have a great senior year,” Mr. Feuerborn said. “This is not anything he needed to have happen, wondering where we’re going to live next week. The school has come up with many ways to help us. We’re forever grateful.”
If you would like to donate to the Feuerborn family, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-prevent-the-feuerborns-from-going-homeless.
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