A SITUATION:
GNG has been helping Mary, a mother of four who is recently separated from her husband.  She found a new place to live, and with two part time jobs and help from her husband for rent she could scrape by, especially while she could make use of local food pantries.

A PROBLEM:
When her children were exposed to COVID, they all had to quarantine for 10 days which meant no work. Bills backed up. She returned to her jobs, now working 7 days a week, meaning she could no longer pick up food from the local pantries.

THE SYSTEMIC PROBLEM: Many social service entities can provide funds to families for specific things: utility bills, eviction prevention after an official judgment, some medical expenses. Gaps are often for things such as:

• help for eviction prevention before judgment
• car repair
• auto insurance
• past debt such as utility bills or past due rent
• medical debt
• certain educational expenses

THE GN PROCESS:
When GNG receives a referral, we meet with the client to discuss the situation and refer them to local nonprofit partners for screening. Once it is clear the type of assistance available, GNG can discern needs that aren’t met.  This is where the community comes in.  We present the need to GNG through social media and emails, because we know that once a need is clear, people will step up for one another. Where there is a monetary shortfall, your donations help us fulfill the need.

HOW GNs HAVE HELPED:
From a Facebook post about the situation, two GNs stepped up with groceries, and another paid for two months of car insurance. In addition, a GN was able to pick up pantry food on Mary’s behalf. We have also reached out to more potential employers through personal connections so she may be able to earn more money.

MORE NEEDS TO COME:
While Mary continues to add extra hours, childcare allowing her to do so comes at a big financial cost. Until she is on stable footing, GNG will continue to consider ways to help. 

Recurrent or one time donations to this fund expand our capacity to help families like Mary’s.  No one can do everything, but everyone can do something, and it really does make a difference.