A woman was raising her two children on her own, receiving no child support. She worked full time during the day and held a part time job in the evenings while she paid her neighbor for childcare. Her two jobs enabled her to pay her family’s living expenses, but there was no income left for saving, even after supplemental food assistance through the SNAP program. Every month, her paycheck came in and went straight to bills. One of her children contracted a virus and was unable to go to school for a week – her neighbor could not watch the child for her the entire time, so Samara had to miss work to stay home and care for her sick child. Missing nearly a week of work was difficult, but she thought she could still manage the rental and utility bills …. Until, the next week, mom contracted the virus as well. She missed four days of work while she recuperated at home. With unpaid sick days, she would not have enough money to pay next month’s rent – due in less than one week. She was terrified of incurring the $100 late charge. She came to Bluffton Self Help, where after an interview and verification of documents, a commitment was made to help with next month’s rent.
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