Hey there. I’m Zac, I’m 23, I’m a pharmacy technician, a husband-to-be, and I’m waist-deep in debt.

I moved out from my dad’s house for the first time in May of 2024. It was a bit of an emergency situation, but I had thousands in my savings account, well-managed credit cards, and a lot of resources at my disposal.

Then I crashed one of our cars, and all the savings I’d built up for moving out had to be immediately used on tow and storage fees, not to mention getting my hands on a new car somehow.

It almost seemed like it was gonna be fine!  But I was not vetting my used car sellers well enough. I paid nearly $4000 out of pocket for a 2012 Cruze, but it broke down weeks after purchase. A mechanic listed the problem as a cracked engine cylinder, and the price to fix that on a discontinued vehicle is not nice! 

Instead, I ended up putting down a $1,500 down payment for a Corolla.  The Cruze was not salvageable in a way that matters to our situation, and I never recovered any of the money I wasted buying it.  I spent a lot of time stacking up debts on my credit cards buying groceries and household essentials in order to get by.

My healthcare issues have been about settled, thanks to the kindness and generosity of those following my story.  Right now, I’m more worried about potential repossession for that Corolla I had to buy earlier.  This thing is not a luxury.  Without that transport, everything goes downhill fast.   Most of my cards are now closed, and my credit score hasn’t recovered enough to open up new ones.

My biggest mistake was not talking to the people around me when I needed to the most. Had I asked for help earlier, things would have never gotten this bad.  That’s alright.  We learn and we grow—but I still need to get rent paid.

Every dollar counts toward me being able to keep paying my rent, keep my roommate’s car, and keep taking my essential medications.  Anything you can give my fiancé and I will have me blessing you in my sleep, I promise!