Women Find Stability with Help from Women & Family Life Center
For many women living one paycheck away from a financial crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating. The Women and Family Life Center has offered a lifeline.
When a single mother living on the Shoreline had to temporarily leave her job after coming down with COVID-19, the paychecks stopped. After quarantining herself from her 10-year old son by sleeping in her car, she eventually recovered and returned to work. But her hours had been cut to the point where she could not make ends meet. Exhausted and not knowing where else to turn, she went to Women & Family Life Center in Guilford and received a lifeline.
She received direct assistance from the center to cover her phone bill, medications and a portion of her rent that became past due while she was sick. The center helped her apply for and receive food assistance, and an attorney met with her to work on recovering child support from her son’s father. She also connected with a program to begin pursuing a career as a Certified Nursing Assistant.
The mother and her son are among the hundreds of families receiving emergency financial support from the center's COVID-19 response fund, along with other programming services that help to get their lives on track. The center acts as a hub that connects vulnerable women to financial, legal, educational, health and other resources.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 30-year old organization has seen an unprecedented demand for services from women coming through its doors, according to a recent report to The Community Foundation.
The Community Foundation is supporting the center with a $90,000 three-year general operating support grant (2020-22) and awarded a $20,000 grant from the Greater New Haven COVID-19 Community Fund. The center has also received past support from the Community Fund for Women and Girls.
Learn more about Women & Family Life Center and contribute on giveGreater.org.
