Kayla is a sixth-grader here in Bellevue. When the coronavirus outbreak began and businesses began to shut down, her mom – a single mother to Kayla and her sister – was laid off from her job at a restaurant. Now Kayla’s family is struggling even more to make ends meet in this new reality.
Money is tight. The income Kayla’s mom was making before she was laid off was just enough to cover the rent, bills and other necessities. With her income halted, she must make difficult choices between paying her bills or buying groceries. Kayla’s mom often chooses to skip meals so that her daughters can eat. These are choices that no mother should ever have to make.
Kayla’s mom, who has asthma, also lives in fear of getting sick with the virus and being isolated from her daughters. The disruptions to their regular routines and fear of getting sick are leading to overwhelming anxiety for Kayla’s mom and the girls. Kayla and her sister often have to manage their schoolwork on their own while their mom is in survival mode, trying to come up with alternatives to keep life going with no income.
Kayla and her sister usually rely on the free meal program at their school for nutrition. However, with no car, accessing the school district’s food distribution sites is very difficult.
After the school district discovered that Kayla’s and her sister weren’t eating enough, they immediately mailed food vouchers provided by Bellevue LifeSpring directly to the family. Thanks to your support, their nutritional needs are now covered for the entire month of April. Kayla’s family can purchase groceries from the nearby Safeway and they don’t have to worry about choosing between bills, health and buying groceries.
Bellevue LifeSpring is also working proactively with their landlord to ensure Kayla’s family has the support they need to prevent eviction. The relief of knowing that her family has the food they need and will be able to stay in their apartment even when this is all over means the world to Kayla’s mom.
Bellevue community members with fewer financial resources have fewer options as they navigate the new normal of closures and shelter-in-place orders. Families who are already dependent on low-wage or seasonal work are having their hours reduced, losing their jobs or are at higher risk of getting infected with COVID-19 while they continue to work. With little to fall back on, even the slightest break in income can have devastating effects on these families, let alone the current reality of losing income for many months.
Help us help families stay afloat during this time and consider making an investment in emergency support for Bellevue kids today.
