Melody Dotson applied for assistance to bring her mortgage current which is now 3 months behind. Although she is on the deed to the house, the mortgage is in her ex's name which does not allow for her to make repayment arrangements with the mortgage company. She has confidence that she will have no problem making the payment now that she has several job opportunities ahead of her. Due to the fact that the mortgage is in her ex's name, we cannot determine if our assistance would help Melody keep her home in the long-run. Given this information, Melody does not appear to meet the Krewe's criteria of "dire need". Her home is not in foreclosure as of yet, and she has the income to begin to make payments. The legalities of the mortgage issue is not something we have the resources to help her with. At this time, I will not pursue a vote to assist Melody Dotson. If anyone disagrees with this decision, please state your comment within 24 hours of this post.

Hello Krewe, I had the pleasure of speaking with Melody today about her recent request for assistance. I had several questions of my own to get a better picture of the situation. Her dire need is mortgage payments. August 1st will be the 3rd month it hasn't been paid. Melody has been unable to speak to the mortgage company to inquire about any available hardship programs because she is not listed on the mortgage, only the deed. Her ex who usually pays the mortgage is the sole account holder. She has stated that out of spite, he will not continue to pay. She feels that he hopes she will wind up homeless. At first, Melody didn't seem to want to share details about what transpired to leave her in this situation. She did share that her ex was living a double life as a gay man for several years and is currently facing charges related to an incident involving her 16 year old son. She described her ex as being narcissistic and controlling which is how he ended up with the house in his name. Melody says there is now a permanent injunction against him so he cannot return to the home. I have not been able to confirm this through public record. The ex's name is Jovan Dixon. Melody started a temp position at a processing facility called "Forte' Frozen". Her first day at work was today. She will be working full-time hours but is unsure how much her paychecks will be until she gets her first one. She recently completed Med Tech certification that will allow her to work in an assisted living setting but she has not been able to find a position doing that. She is also signed up to attend the training class for Bus Attendant for St. John's County Schools on 8/19. In addition, Melody has an LLC and wants to get her T-Shirt business back up and running. Her children are 16 and 17 years old and both have jobs. At this time, the mortgage company has not begun foreclosure proceedings. I asked Melody to provide a copy of the most recent mortgage statement and I am waiting to receive that. Monthly mortgage payments are $1584. Total due on 8/1 is $4857.59. She has been advised by a realtor that she should continue to make payments and keep the account current until she is able to re-finance and have a probate judge remove her ex from the account. She is very scared that she will lose her home because of this and be in a much worse situation. I have been able to reach 1 of the 3 references listed. Lauren Ramirez is a friend of the applicant and was able to confirm that Melody is doing everything possible to try and save her family's home. I plan to keep in contact with Melody while her request is being reviewed. Please post your questions in the comments and I'll do my best to get answers timely.

I came across a news article about Michael Riley's passing. He was the St. Augustine firefighter with early onset Alzheimer's whom we helped a couple of years back. I just wanted to share this information with the Krewe. The link to the article is below if anyone would like to read about him. https://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/local/st-augustine-firefighter-dies-due-alzheimers/63ERE5ZRIFD57A7T5M6A2XV23A/?mibextid=Zxz2cZ#lbz0tb7mgfuh29tnqtt

Saturday we are celebrating the 7th Anniversary of our Krewe. Captain Skar is hosting a brunch at his home for Krewe members following photography at Marineland Beach. (See previous announcement) How many are planning to attend? Leave your “aye” in the comments and bring a dish to share!

Its been a wild few months planning and now it’s time to put it all together! To those who have volunteered to assist with set up of decor, please arrive at the Magnolia Room between 10 and 11am on Saturday. You must park in the main parking lot and walk over. Just say you’re helping with event set-up and there shouldn‘t be any problems getting through. There will be plenty to do but it shouldn’t take very long. Bring something to drink and come ready to transform The Fountain of Youth into a spooky Halloween enchantment. Text or Call Erin at (419)980-9170 if you encounter any problems.

Hey Krewe! ACP‘s annual Blackbeard’s Ball is fast approaching and it’s time to reserve seating for the Krewe of the 13. At this time, we have 2 tables secured and more tables can be made available if needed. There are 8 seats per table. Cost per table had always been $125 in previous years and those who wished to reserve a seat, would pay 1/8 of the cost ($15.65). This way the table fees are covered and no Krewe funds are interrupted. I will confirm this cost with the appropriate representative from ACP and update any numbers as needed. With all that being said, who wants to reserve a seat at the Krewe table?!? Leave your names in the comments or shoot me a quick text or message. I’ll be collecting payments via PayPal, Venmo or Cash App. See info below. paypal: @Flannigan2 Venmo: @Erin-Flannigan-2 Cashapp: $Flannigannie phone: (419)980-9170 UPDATE! I spoke with Kim from ACP and confirmed that Tables are $100! This brings the individual reservation cost down to $12.50pp! 😎

Thank you to everyone who has submitted their payment for their seat reservation. As of this morning, there are 15 reserved seats not yet paid. That is almost half. Please submit your payment of $15.65/seat as soon as possible to retain your place at the Krewe table. Payment can be made via PayPal @ Flannigan2. If other arrangements need to be made, please contact me. I have to submit the total payment to ACP by the end of this month. Luckily, we were able to add an additional table to accommodate the large demand! We only have 2 more seats up for grabs!!! If you were thinking about reserving a seat but couldn’t, now is your chance! This year is going to be better than ever. ACP did a lovely job choosing the venue. If you haven’t already, go over to the ACP Facebook page. You’ll find the link to purchase your ticket to the Ball and all the information about date/time/place. I can’t wait to see everyone! 💃🏽

I am excited to announce that all of the available Krewe seats for this year’s Blackbeard’s Ball have been reserved! If you’ve reserved a seat and still haven’t sent payment to either Shawn or I, please do so no later than 10/28. Cost for each seat is $15.63. Please send via the PayPal link in the comments. If you do not have PayPal, contact me or Shawn to make another arrangement. I look forward to seeing all of you!