Homeless for two years, Joette Tavernise ‘in shock’ over support for her and Boogie
Joette Tavernise had spent more than two years living out of her car and on the ground in parking lots at south Charlotte shopping malls with her beloved dog Boogie, then more than three months in either a shelter or extended-stay hotels.
But for the past few days, the 73-year-old retired grandmother has been living in a nice, clean (albeit temporary) apartment in Hickory — thanks to the generosity of a small group of strangers — and watching in astonishment as tens of thousands of dollars have flowed into a GoFundMe set up on her behalf, thanks to a very large group of them.
Last Thursday, the Observer published a story on its website about Tavernise’s years-long plight and her friendship with a Charlotte woman, Marceil Handkammer, who took the lead in a staunch effort to rescue Tavernise from homelessness.
When the story first went live, there was a little more than $7,000 in the GoFundMe, and there hadn’t been a donation made in three days. Between the time it was published online and Sunday (when it appeared in the print edition of the newspaper), that pot of money grew to nearly $34,000.
As of 5 p.m. Monday, the total had reached $38,670.
That’s not all, though. The Observer fielded dozens of emails and calls from readers, with Samaritans from around the Charlotte area offering discounted rates on apartments and offers to send hundreds of dollars in cash through the mail to her; and kind-hearted folks from as far away as Kansas and Florida offering free rooms in their houses that they claimed they’re willing to let Tavernise and her dog stay in indefinitely.
One reader said she would pay up to $5,000 directly to a veterinarian if it was deemed possible that her morkie’s mitral valve prolapse (a serious heart condition) was correctable. Another reader, who said she was moving from a single-family home into a much smaller residence at a retirement community, wanted to give Tavernise all of the furniture and even the housewares in her current home as she downsizes.
“Unbelievable,” Tavernise said Monday afternoon of the outpouring of support. “I’m amazed. I’m in shock. I just never thought this would take off like it did. And it’s great. It’s great. ... Just when you think you’ve got people figured out, or the world figured out, or whatever, it does a flip-flop on you and you realize you were wrong about a lot of things.”
Handkammer, the 47-year-old stay-at-home mother of two who has been doing all the legwork to get Tavernise situated, expressed gratitude as well. “People’s hearts and generosity are incredible.”
She said on Monday that she didn’t have a solid update as to where Tavernise might be headed next “because there are so many balls in the air. I am researching all options.” But she said she does know this: The money in the GoFundMe won’t be touched until she has enlisted a CPA to assist with the handling of the donations (she said she has a lead on one who might be able to help for free) and an attorney to set up any documentation for a trust account (she said she’s hopeful that one might come forward to offer to do the same).
“You read stories about how things go sideways with these GoFundMes,” Handkammer said, and she wants everything with this one to be above-board and bulletproof under scrutiny.
Added Tavernise, when asked if she believes she’s spent her last night on the street thanks to the support: “I do feel that way. And if I do have to spend the night on the street, it will be my own fault for not doing the right things the right way. I definitely think everything can be handled in the proper way, and if that happens ... I might just turn out to be all right.”
