After she was arrested for leaving two of her children in a motel room as she worked, Shaina Bell‘s story went viral and caught the attention of many who just wanted to help.
Read More: Blue Ivy joins mom Beyonce in new Ivy Park campaign
A GoFundMe launched by Bell’s mother Danielle Hosey has reached over $150K in donations after the news spread across the country. As theGrio reported, Bell was taken into custody by Liberty Township police and pleaded not guilty to child endangerment charges. The next hearing in the matter is set for April. When theGrio first reported on the story the fundraiser had only crossed the $90K threshold.
According to theGrio, hip-hop record label founder Pierre “Pee’ Thomas was a top donor to the campaign, sharing empathy for Bell’s struggle to work and take care of children with minimal assistance. He made a $10K donation.
“Someone get me this young lady info. My mom used to have to do the same thing when we were young, not cause of abandonment issues, it’s because people can’t afford child care working at a pizza shop. She wasn’t hanging out at a club. She was at work,” Thomas shared, according to the report.
Cleveland Cavaliers player JaVale McGee is also listed as a top donor after he made a $5K contribution. An update made to the GoFundMe on Feb. 21 shared gratitude for the financial assistance and kind words of support and announced the campaign would close with a total of $165,639K raised.
“Shaina and I are very grateful for not only the financial support but also (as I stated previously) the kind words of support and encouragement, the prayers, and well wishes. So many of you took time to write personal messages and I didn’t have a chance to read all of them, but I did attempt to read and respond to as many as I could.”
During a recent interview with WKBN 27 First News, Bell shared more on her decision to leave her children in the motel as she worked at the Little Caesar’s shop down the street. According to the report, the children’s father was the person responsible for calling the authorities.
“I had to go to work. My daughter decided that she wanted to stay here. My daughter told me that this is where she wants to be, and I felt that she was old enough to be able to stay here with her sister for a few hours because my job is right down the street,” Bell said to the news outlet.
She continued, ‘I never set blame on anybody for anything because at the end of the day nobody left my kids in the hotel but me. I’ve cried a couple of times since this situation started. I’m just trying to keep a level head and trying to stay strong because that’s all I can do.”
Beyond the arrest, Bell also expressed her love for her three children, Faith, Jai’Sean, and Jade, ages 9, 7 and 3.
“My kids bring me joy. They make me laugh. They’re my world. I would never do anything to harm my kids. My kids are everything to me,” she said to the news outlet. “That’s all I do is go to work and take care of my kids. That’s all I do.”
Read More: Black mom on premature birth, racial disparities in maternal health: ‘I carry that with me’
According to the news outlet, Bell plans to use the money from the GoFundMe to purchase a home. At the time of the arrest, the mother and children were living in the Motel 6.
Have you subscribed to theGrio’s “Dear Culture” podcast? Download our newest episodes now!
TheGrio is now on Apple TV, Amazon Fire and Roku. Download theGrio.com today!