Perry man seeks crowd funding to keep family in home

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Halmar Arteaga, left, is trying to keep the family home together for his mother, sister and brother and family dog by starting a GoFundMe page.

A Perry man has made a GoFundMe page in an effort to keep his mother and siblings in their family home.

“Ever since my parents got divorced, it has hit our family hard,” said Halmar Arteaga on the GoFundMe page created Friday. “I have tried to step up to fill the role my dad has left behind. I have taken charge for paying the bills as well as paying the house mortgages, which were in my dad’s name, while my mom has taken care of the expenses for my siblings.”

Arteaga, a 2019 graduate of Perry High School, shouldered the burden as best he could but was met with a unforeseen obstacle.

“It was going okay until we found out recently that my dad is asking to take his name off of the mortgage,” he said. “This only left us two options: pay the rest of the house mortgage, or find someone that would be willing to cosign the debt.”

No cosigner has been found, so Arteaga turned to GoFundMe as a possible source of financial support.

The Bluejay’s diligence at PHS was rewarded when as a senior he was awarded a Hispanics United for Perry Scholarship, a Lloyd and Anne Lane Scholarship and a Madelon Capp Carlile Scholarship, and he received the National Association of Secondary School Principals Citizenship Award. But now his academic future is in doubt.

“The house we currently live in is the only house my brother and sister live, sleep and play in since my mom got sole legal custody,” he said. “I made a promise to my siblings that I would try to make sure I would maintain our lives the way they were, and I am scared to tell them I failed. I’ve given up going to college and dedicated most of my time working to pay off this house, and it pains me a lot that this is happening.”

The GoFundMe page has so far raised about $700 toward the $40,000 house note. Perry pride and humbleness mix in Arteaga’s appeal: “My family and I are grateful for any help in trying to get through this situation.”

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