Lake Area United Way



MEET ANAAna R. is a single mother of three girls ages 16, 12, and 7. She joined Level Up with the goal of reducing her credit card debt. While in an abusive relationship, she accumulated $8,000 in debt on 10 credit cards. She bravely left the relationship and moved to a domestic violence shelter.Ana approached a local bank for a debt consolidation loan, but they were unable to approve her application. Fortunately, her banker had learned about the Level Up program during a United Way Campaign presentation. She told Ana about the program.United Way met her where she was.Debt was only one of Ana’s challenges. Although she had a steady job in a local hospital, she needed a plan to get out of debt and find permanent housing.United Way is her accountability partner.The Level Up Family Career Navigator, Talisa Rogers-Hall, encouraged Ana to listen to financial podcasts from Dave Ramsey and Suze Orman. Talisa suggested using the snowball technique to pay off high interest/low balance credit cards first. As Ana paid off each balance she applied that payment to the next credit card. Finally, in February 2020, Ana paid off her debt using her income tax refund. Ana began budgeting, which she had never learned before.?United Way is her advocate.With her debt clear, Ana and her daughters could move on to their next goal: finding a stable place to live. Ana had been working with a local homeless prevention organization to find affordable housing in East Chicago. Sometimes her caseworker didn’t respond to her messages, and she was in danger of losing a housing voucher because of the communication problem. She was frustrated and downhearted. Without support from Level Up and advocacy on her behalf from United Way staff, Ana would have given up. Ana moved into her apartment in April 2020.United Way connects her to resources.Encouraged by her success in the program and inspired by other participants, Ana’s next goals are to save enough for a down payment on a home and find a better paying job. During a Level Up monthly meeting, we invited Northwest Indiana Community Action representatives to explain the Individual Development Account program. IDA’s match a person’s savings $3 to $1 up to $6,000. Ana enrolled, and she is participating in home ownership classes. Ana is using the financial support of WorkOne to pay for a medical coding class, which will help her earn a better income. The class instructor has been able to shepherd Ana through the WorkOne system, and Ana begins class on June 2.You can help Ana continue on her journey by supporting Lake Area United Way’s work to help ALICE families in Lake County move towards financial stability and self-sufficiency.MEET DIONNAWhen Dionna joined Level Up in September 2019, her family depended on her income. She worked part time as an administrative assistant coordinator. Her husband, Jimmy, was out-of-work as a truck driver due to an incident on the job several years ago. They lived with her daughter and granddaughter in Crown Point. United Way helps families make plans.Dionna and Jimmy always did the jobs that they had to do. They hadn’t ever been asked to think about the work that they wanted to do, but the family needed income quickly. Our Level Up Family Career Navigator, Talisa Rogers-Hall, coached Dionna and her husband to put their skills and talents to work immediately while at the same time encouraging them to dream about jobs that they would enjoy, not endure. So, Dionna asked her employer to become full time, and her husband used his CDL license to enrolled in a trucker training program.United Way inspires people to dream about meaningful work.While her husband was training on the road, Dionna and her daughter began to imagine their dream jobs in nursing and midwifery. They started the enrollment process for a fall nursing program at a local community college. When her husband returned, he imagined using his CDL license at a local warehouse so that he wouldn’t need to be away from his family for long periods of time. United Way encourages connection and social support.Suddenly, disaster struck. Jimmy passed away unexpectedly in December 2019. Though it was a struggle, Dionna and her daughter participated in monthly Level Up group meetings. They offered support to other participants and received consolation. They made new friends.During the winter, Dionna and her daughter considered moving to the East Coast, but eventually they decided to stay in Northwest Indiana. Her daughter took a part-time job, passed her driver’s license exam, and still plans to study nursing this fall.United Way encourages and supports family’s resilience in the face of tragedy.Dionna paused her plans to enroll in the nursing program. Right now, her full-time job is helping her achieve her financial goals. She’s focused on saving for a down payment on a home. She opened an Individual Development Account, which matches her savings $3 for every $1 she contributes. Dionna was pre-approved for a home loan in April.Your support of Lake Area United Way helps families like Dionna’s to achieve their dreams and move towards financial stability.MEET MARISSAMarissa’s dream is to help struggling parents and change the community. Her plan is to launch a nonprofit organization that provides resources, support groups, and family supports. But she knew that in order to help her clients make progress in their lives, she had to make progress in her own.Marissa is a single mother of two children, aged 7 and 8. When she joined Level Up last fall, she was stuck in a full-time job that she hated and that didn’t pay her enough. She lived paycheck to paycheck. Her children were having difficulty in school, both academically and behaviorally. Marissa committed to helping her children. She left her full-time job and picked up several part-time jobs that gave her the flexibility to instruct her children and finish her Master’s degree in Social Work.United Way cares about the whole person.This was a frenetic pace. She was financially strapped and under heavy academic and family pressure to succeed. In February, she was at the end of her rope, and our Family Career Navigator, Talisa Rogers-Hall connected her to mental health supports. United Way believes in Level Up clientsThrough talk therapy and self-care, Marissa regained her focus and her balance. She listened to Dave Ramsey and Suze Orman podcasts and took small steps toward financial freedom. She purchased life insurance. This May, she told her story of growth and change as Participant of the Month during the Level Up meeting. United Way is her accountability partner.She graduated with a Master’s degree in Social Work in June, and ?has a full-time job waiting for her at the nonprofit where she completed her graduate internship. Her next goals include the soft launch of her own nonprofit organization in August 2020. Financially, she plans to work on reducing her student loan debt and increasing her savings. By supporting the work of Lake Area United Way, you support the dreams of people like Marissa. By investing in them, you are investing in your community’s well being and development.MEET JESSIEJessie B. is a single mother of three children—12-year-old twin girls and a five-year-old boy. When she joined Level Up last December, she was employed full-time as a contractor for a government agency. But she had dreams of becoming a medical coder. United Way simplifies complex systems.Our Level Up Family Career Navigator, Talisa Rogers-Hall, researched medical coding programs and learned that WorkOne received funding to pay for medical coding certification. Navigating through WorkOne is challenging, and becoming connected to a Career Advisor isn’t an easy process. With the advice of a WorkOne employee serving on the United Way ALICE Jobs Work Group, Talisa created a specific pathway for clients to become connected to WorkOne services. United Way encourages self-advocacy.Once Jessie expressed her interest in taking the medical coding certification course to her WorkOne Career Advisor, she was hesitant to follow-up too frequently. She didn’t want to “bother” the Career Advisor. Based on advice from WorkOne employees, the Family Career Navigator encouraged Jessie to call 2-3 times per week letting the Career Advisor know how taking this course will positively impact her family. Jessie’s application was accepted!United Way builds trust.Last fall, Jessie was diagnosed with cancer. As a contractor, she did not have health benefits at her job, and the bills began to pile up. At our monthly Level Up meeting, we talked about the common challenges that ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) families face. We talked about the hard reality that people living paycheck-to-paycheck are only one financial crisis away from poverty or homelessness. That’s when Jessie opened up. She was six months behind on her mortgage and about to go into foreclosure. United Way connects people to resources they don’t know about.When she did open up, Talisa connected her to the Hardest Hit Fund. The Hardest Hit Fund prevents avoidable foreclosure and helps stabilize the housing market. The fund may provide up to six months or $30,000 in mortgage payment assistance for approved homeowners. Jessie qualified. She saved her home. In addition, United Way used Barrier Buster funds to provide a gas card so that she could make it to her next paycheck. Now, secure in her home and registered for the medical coding course funded by WorkOne, Jessie has plans to create a home repair savings fund through the Individual Development Account program, which matches her savings $3 for every $1 she contributes. She is looking forward to starting the course and seeking better paying employment this fall.Your support of Lake Area United Way helps people like Jessie navigate the support systems in our community so that they can move towards self-sufficiency. ? ................
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