KENT, Wash. — A Kent mother said she received an eviction notice from her landlord after she had woken up from a coma, which was caused by a stroke. The mother, who has limited movement of her body, is now scrambling to find help for her children.
KIRO 7 News spoke with Christina Sivilay, who lives at the Wandering Creek Apartments, located on Southeast 240th Street in Kent.
The mother said she suffered a stroke last April, which left her in a coma at a hospital for about a month.
When she woke up, she said she received an eviction notice from her landlord.
She’s now concerned about her two sons who are 12 years old and seven years old.
“I just want them to know they’re okay, and that we don’t have to live in the street or shelter,” she shared.
Since the stroke, Sivilay said she has been going to physical therapy twice a week to regain her movement and her strength.
The mother of two showed KIRO 7 News that she does not have full control of half her body, which is preventing her from finding work to help pay rent.
“The pain, it hurts every day because my kids can’t do anything with me,” she said. “When I came home after the hospital, I felt useless. I couldn’t do anything I could do before with my kids, like cook and clean, like I wanted to do.”
“For me, I’m a worker. I don’t like staying home or anything. I work all the time. It hurts me a lot,” she said.
“It’s a hurt feeling because she has two sons she has to be responsible. She works hard for, this girl, she works really hard for her family, her two kids,” said Tane Porttmann, aunt.
“I try to be strong for her, try to be there for her with my sister, help her with everything,” said Sounthala Sivilay, Christina’s mother. “Hurt because she’s a good daughter. Sad for her. She works more than 10 hours a day every day.”
“She’s part of me. She’s my life. All my kids are my life,” Sounthala added.
KIRO 7 News reached out to management of Wandering Creek Apartments, which is owned by Essex, a real estate investment trust.
Sivilay told KIRO 7 News that she can’t feel anything on the right side of her face, body, arms and legs.
“I feel like it’s (right arm) missing. Like it’s cut off sometimes,” she added.
While Sivilay is working to get back on her feet, her mother and her aunt are helping by looking for resources within the community, however, they said several of the programs that they had looked at have long waiting lists.
“It’s a hurt feeling because she has two sons she has to be responsible. She works hard for, this girl, she works really hard for her family, her two kids,” said Tane Porttmann, aunt.
“I try to be strong for her, try to be there for her with my sister, help her with everything,” said Sounthala Sivilay, Christina’s mother. “Hurt because she’s a good daughter. Sad for her. She works more than 10 hours a day every day.”
“She’s part of me. She’s my life. All my kids are my life,” Sounthala added.
KIRO 7 News reached out to management of Wandering Creek Apartments, which is owned by Essex, a real estate investment trust.
Courtney, who did not want to identify her last name or position, said the company will not provide a statement.
According to King County’s latest data, more than 51,000 people across the county wanted help with rental assistance, however, only 58 percent of them received help.
The data also points out that 55 percent of households did not receive help because they were ineligible for assistance, while 34 percent of households were non-responsive.
The data also showed which cities across The Puget Sound received the most rental assistance.
Tukwila ranked first with SeaTac following second. Federal Way came in fourth with Kent and Auburn placing in seventh and eighth among all cities.
Loved ones created a GoFundMe to help Sivilay and her family. A spokesperson for GoFundMe said the account has been verified.