I lost my home in a fire

Shalom! My name is Oleg, I’m a rabbit, and I need your help.

The thing is, my owners and I lost our home in a fire. But let me start the story from the beginning.

I live in Bat Yam with three wonderful owners. They adopted me during the Iranian missile threats — apparently to make the trips to the bomb shelter a bit more cheerful. My owners arrived in the country quite recently, and they all have similar backgrounds: young women who moved to Israel alone after high school through various programs, served in the IDF as lone soldiers, and met while living in the same military dormitory. After their service, they decided that living together would be more fun, especially when you don't have a mother or father in the country — it’s nice to come home and know there’s someone to talk to in the evening. Now, my favorite trio of "battle sisters" is working and preparing for university entrance exams.

That evening, nothing foreshadowed trouble. I was fast asleep on my special rabbit pillow in the living room while the girls were on their phones. Suddenly, there was a smell of burning plastic in the air — faint at first, then increasingly noticeable. The girls began looking for the source, opened the door to one of the bedrooms — and saw a raging fire. It was already impossible to put it out ourselves, and the smoke caused everyone to cough violently. The girls simply grabbed a few essentials, including me, and ran outside. Fortunately, alert neighbors had already called the fire department.

As a result of the fire, one room was completely gutted. Whatever wasn't destroyed by the flames was ruined by water: personal belongings, most of their documents, a financial reserve in dollars (holiday gifts from parents that the girl living in that room had been saving for her studies), a laptop, an e-reader, textbooks, and clothes. And — most heartbreakingly — letters and photos of their families. Medical records from their home country were also destroyed, and they can only be restored from abroad. The rest of the apartment suffered from smoke and water damage; currently, only one room is habitable. The cause of the fire was mundane — old outlets and poorly installed wiring from years ago. In truth, we were lucky — it could have been much worse. Had the fire started at night, the consequences could have been catastrophic.

Insurance will cover the repairs and the landlord's furniture, but the tenants' personal belongings and valuables are not covered. The landlord offered either early termination of the lease or free rent while the apartment is being restored. Currently, I am staying with one of the girls at a friend's place (which can't last forever), the second girl was forced to use her last bit of money to fly back to her parents to recover her documents (including medical records for a complex congenital condition that requires having all treatment history on hand), and the third is also temporarily staying with friends in cramped conditions. Moving into a new apartment is unaffordable for my owners — all their military savings were spent on the current apartment's bank guarantee, security deposits, and realtor fees. Besides, not all landlords find me charming or want to rent to young women with a pet.

We need your help to rebuild our reserve: to purchase equipment for studies, pay for a sublet for the girls and me, buy me a new cage and a supply of specialized food (I have allergies), purchase seasonal clothing and shoes, and cover the return flights and financial stability. The girls work in the food service industry where wages are quite low — and with preparatory courses and intensive studies starting soon, there will be even less time to work. Without you, things will be very difficult for us. Additionally, all three girls need psychological support after what they've been through — the fire has left a significant trauma: insomnia and nightmares are setting them back and making it hard to work and study.

Please, do not look away from our misfortune.