On Monday, Dasha Kelly was facing eviction and did not know how she was going to pay her back rent. A day later, thanks to strangers, so far more than $ 170,000 has been raised for her and her three daughters.

On Tuesday, Kelly sat on her couch, one of the last pieces of furniture left in her Las Vegas apartment, and learned how much money was raised. The mother of three was speechless when Citizen Free Press’s Erin Burnett told her the amount.

“I just want to thank you all,” Kelly said as tears ran down her face. “I’m still in denial.”

Kelly was accompanied by her three daughters Sharron, 8 years old; Kia, 6, and Imani, 5. The family was featured in a Citizen Free Press story about the federal eviction moratorium that ended last weekend.

Last year, the 32-year-old lost her job as a card dealer when the pandemic forced casinos to close. She is one of more than 11 million Americans who are behind on their rent, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities.

“I had no idea what we were going to do,” Kelly said of facing eviction.

He opened a GoFundMe page Monday night hoping to raise $ 2,000 to cover the back rent he owed. Just 24 hours later, the campaign has raised more than $ 172,000 from more than 2,700 donors.

“It gave me a lot of hope,” she said. “And I just want to make sure I do the best I can to help the next person who is in the same situation as me.”

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