A small business owner in Chatham is trying to get back on her feet after a string of misfortune.
Julia Pippo owns Out of the Woodz Home, a design business that creates custom painted wood signs.
The business got started after Pippo was involved in a serious collision six years ago and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Previously working in the nursing field, Pippo had to relearn everything she knew including how to walk, talk and eat.
During her recovery process, she was relearning her fine motor skills and decided to take up painting. What started as just being able to paint a few dots eventually turned into the businesses she now owns today.
"I worked my [butt] off to save money," she said. "I started from the ground up. After my accident, I lost everything and had to start over. Before my accident, I never painted a day in my life."
Out of the Woodz is a one-woman show, run out of Pippo's garage on Park Lane in Chatham. At the end of April, she made the difficult decision to cease operations until further notice due to COVID-19 concerns.
Around that same time, Pippo's mother, who has multiple sclerosis and is currently battling cancer, was rushed to the hospital.
Pippo said an already heartwrenching situation was made worse because of COVID-19 restrictions.
"Usually our whole family would be right there with her. We'd be holding her hand while she's going through all the pain," said Pippo. "Nobody's allowed to see her. When the ambulance came to get her, she had no shoes on. We weren't even allowed to bring her shoes."
While trying to keep herself busy on Sunday, Pippo was doing porch drop-offs of strawberry plants to her friends and families. When she returned, she said she was shocked to discover that all her tools had been stolen.
Pippo said everything except her table saw was taken, totalling a little over $1,000 in value. In addition, she said many of the items were passed down to her from her grandparents and held sentimental value.
"You hear about it happening but then when it happens to you. I can say the same about my mom being in the hospital. I hear all these stories of all these people not being able to see their loved loved ones and hug their loved ones when they're in pain. You don't know what it's like until it happens to you," she said.
Her friend Ashley set up a GoFundMe page to help Pippo get back on her feet and purchase new tools to produce the outstanding orders she had and to help her start back up once COVID-19 restrictions have loosened.
However, Pippo said it took some convincing for her to accept assistance.
"I'm not really one to ask for help. I'm a hustler, I like to work really hard and do the best that I can with what I have, even though it's not much," she said. "I like to work and fulfill myself."
For now, Pippo said it's a waiting game to get a diagnosis other mom and for when she'll be able to start up her business operations again.
More important than monetary donations, Pippo said the main thing she's asking for is for people to keep her mother in their thoughts and do the same for anyone else who is facing hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"All I wanted is for people to send positive vibes and prayers for my mom," she said. "The tools, I would be able to get back on my feet if they were replaced. But for me, the most important thing is just praying for my mom. Keep her in your prayers and for every other family going through this right now too because I know I'm not the only one. I know I'm not the only person with a sick loved one that they can't see."
