Some families fight to hold on – long before anyone sees the crisis. Cassandra and Joaquin were doing all they could to keep their two children fed and housed. Yet each month, they had to make an impossible choice: buy food or keep a roof over their heads.
When the place they were staying grew unsafe, they moved from motel to motel near their daughter’s school. With nearly all their money going to shelter, they often didn’t have enough left for food.
“We failed them,” Cassandra recalled. “It was just terrible.”
They pushed past their shame and asked relatives for help. When that well ran dry, they pooled loose change to buy a single can of soup for their children to share.
“We would just have to starve it out,” Joaquin said.
Joaquin and Cassandra’s story has a hopeful turn – they found a home with National CORE and are now receiving services from Hope through Housing.
But their struggle is the reality for too many of our neighbors. Not because they did anything wrong – but because the cost of living keeps rising, and one setback can push a family over the edge.
Your gift today can steady a family in crisis – keeping children housed, fed and safe.
Please take a moment to watch Cassandra and Joaquin’s story. Their courage shows how urgent this need is … and how much your help can change.
Thank you for standing with families when they need it most.