Nevada County man houses families in need through Robin Hood Fund
NEVADA COUNTY — Santa's sleigh may have come and gone, but one Nevada County man is gifting people every day, making kindness a year-round mission.
Through a community GoFundMe, Brad Peceimer has been able to house 263 families, give away more than 160 cars and connect countless people with the resources they need to live a better life.
"It just started just by a quirk and it's grown monstrously," Peceimer said. "I pay for a vast majority of it, but we also do fundraisers every year. I utilize GoFundMe and this year, we kind of called it the Robin Hood Fund."
The Robin Hood Fund is a year-round fundraiser, sort of like a community money pool for Nevada County residents, and Peceimer distributes whatever is needed to whoever needs it.
"I came into a situation where I needed my own help," said mom Chelsea Pankey. "He responded within four hours of me messaging him and he had a trailer within a week."
Chelsea said she tried program after program to get her family help with housing, but after two months of no luck, she found the Robin Hood Fund.
"This is what I needed. My kids are healthy and happy and they don't have to worry about where they're going to sleep at night," she said.
"It makes me feel very good. I mean, I won't lie about it, but it also is a service that is badly needed," Peceimer said.
He noted that the community has given more than $30,000 to the Robin Hood Fund over the last three years, and he's got more projects on the books.
"I had such an outpouring of people that were saying, 'If you come across something else, I'd love to be included in this,' " he said.
The Robin Hood Fund has also led to countless families getting into permanent housing, and once that happens, a trailer or accessory dwelling unit can be freed up for the next family in need.
"For Nevada County to have that with Brad, I feel it's a godsend for our community," Pankey said.
