Eighteen-year-old Raul Acosta became a father to his seven younger siblings after their mother unexpectedly passed away in 2014. With no father figure in the picture, Acosta had to assume the role himself. Now twenty-six, Acosta has managed to keep his family together; however, the financial stress of the COVD-19 pandemic threatened to break them up all over again— until complete strangers stepped in to help fund the family.
Initially, Acosta hadn’t planned on becoming a dad. He told reporters, “I was hoping somebody in the family would take that over and handle the responsibilities. I had other plans myself.”
However, Acosta felt a sense of duty toward his family. He continued, saying, “but you gotta do what you gotta do, and I took on the responsibility.” Acosta stepped in; he said, “I wasn’t going to let them go into foster care, get separated. So I did what I needed to do to keep them together.”
His family, which ranged from infants to teenagers, lived in their childhood home in Glendale, California. Acosta said he had plans to remain at that address. He said, “I’d rather keep them all together, know that they’re good, that they’re safe, keep them all under one roof. This house belongs to all of them; you know what I mean? It helps me sleep at night knowing we’re all under the same roof and we’re safe.”
Those plans were almost dashed when Acosta fell behind on mortgage payments and the bank threatened foreclosure if Acosta couldn’t pay nearly $14,000 by May 2022.
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Acosta had received legal help from attorney Sandra Creta for the past few years. It was Creta who helped Acosta gain legal guardianship of his siblings in the beginning. On first witnessing Acosta’s strength, Creta said, “I was so impressed by his maturity and the fact that he had already been packing lunches, braiding hair, changing diapers, using his money from his job at Burger King to fix up the house for years. He was already the dad.”
Though he works multiple jobs, Acosta still struggled to pay bills. Acosta told reporters, “When COVID hit, I ended up falling behind on payments…I have to pay the electric, I have to pay the water, I have to pay insurance on the cars and the house, it all adds up.” Moreover, they hadn’t received aid from the state since December.
Their money troubles culminated in the family almost losing their home in Spring 2022. When she realized what was happening, Creta said she “reached out to the legal community and said I have this client who is one of the best people I know, and he needs help…there was no way I was letting this family lose their home.” Together, they started a GoFundMe in April, mere days before Acosta’s payment was due.
With many only giving $20, the $14,000 was reached in under a week. Many donors additionally wrote notes of support for Acosta and his siblings. One donor, Jennifer, wrote, “Raul is a true hero and we can all learn something from this amazing young man’s dedication to his family. He shows us what love is REALLY all about!” With over $130,000 raised, Acosta was able to stop the foreclosure and his family will stay in their home for years to come.
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