This is a very personal diary today. It deals with a topic that is near to my heart, because I am currently homeless. The path that led me here is a story that could belong to anybody.
My husband and I worked very hard our entire lives. I think our average work week was over sixty hours, each. We never took our vacation days. In 2003, I was injured at work. Two botched surgeries and four years later, I was informed that my condition was now permanent. I began the long process of applying for my Social Security Disability benifits.
At that time, my husband was earning a very high salary, and he provided both of us with top notch medical insurance. We owned a beautiful home in an exclusive Atlanta suburb. We both had fat 401K accounts, and a large portfolio of stocks, as well as hefty cash savings.
Then in early 2007, my husband's kidneys failed. He had a bad reaction to an antibiotic that he took for a chest cold. Thus our fall began.
It was swift. We burned through our savings in the first few months. Then, our stocks lost equity, as did our 401Ks when the markets crashed. We salvaged some money from those accounts, but medical bills sucked that cash right up. Next, the housing market crashed, and we found ourselves the proud owners of a home worth less than we currently owed for it. We were officially broke, and living from paycheck to paycheck. My husband did continue to work, and his company was very generous as they allowed him to work from home most days.
Then, in 2009 his liver failed, and he died very suddenly. One Saturday he was sent directly from dialysis to the ER because his dialysis nurse didn't like how pale he looked. The next morning, he wouldn't wake up. His Drs gave me the news that afternoon about his catastrophic liver failure. On Monday, I had him disconnected from everything except hydration and pain medication. He died on Wednesday afternoon. This was a personal loss that almost broke me. I was certainly unprepared for the ordeal yet to come.
I was left alone after being married for 35 years. I had no income and no insurance. I filed for my husband's life insurance immediatly, but it took nearly six months for me to receive a dime of that money. Meanwhile, I packed up, and moved out of my home. I sold his car which provided me with money to on live on. My adult son and his wife took me in. They lived in Colorado, so I moved there. A few months later, I was approved for SS Disability and Medicare. Then, I finally received my husband's life insurance.
But I didn't have that money for long. Between the fall of 2010 and 2011 my son spent over 190 days in the hospital. He nearly died several times. I paid everything his insurance didn't. The next year he was in the hospital over 90 days, and he lost his right leg. His wife lost her job, and he lost his insurance. Again, I paid for his treatments, physical therapy, and one new prosthetic. That put a significant dent in my cash. We decided, as a family, to move back to our home town, Chattanooga, because the cost of living here is much lower than it was in Colorado.
We were home for less than a month when my son's wife stole every cent I had left, dropped him off with me, and disappeared from our lives. We had less than twenty dollars cash between the two of us, and a two week wait before I would receive another check. Unfortunately, I was stupid enough to trust her, and I had added her name to all my accounts. My son was very ill and I was also very ill off and on. I added her to my accounts so she could keep bills paid if I was unable to do so.
I went to a girlfriend's to live. I slept in a chair there. My son went to his cousin's to live. It took me six months before I could scrape up enough cash to move us into this run down motel. Every time I had a few dollars, my son would need it to pay a doctor or purchase medications. I found myself riding past vacant homes, angry that I was homeless.
Now, we are at least together. We rent one room in a seedy residence motel. We have a stove top and a refrigerator. I bought us a toaster oven. I cook for us. We eat a lot of beans, cornbread, and potatoes. I don't mind, as long as we have something hot every day. We have a little chicken or a few hot dogs once a week. Meat is a treat now.
I try, every month, to save money so we can move into a little house somewhere. I miss having a garden and a cat or dog. Something always comes up. Coming up with 2,000$ (first, last, and a deposit) seems impossible the way things are. I live in fear every week of losing our room here. I see families who have nowhere to go forced to leave here every week. Sometimes it is because they can't come up with the money, but sometimes it is simply because they offend the manager. We have no rights as tenants here. There is a waiting list to get a room here.
One spot of bright news. The state of Tennessee has expanded Medicaid. I feel hopeful that my son will be covered under the new law. If that is the case, I will be able to begin solving our financial problems.
I am not asking for help or for pity. I got where I am because of decisions I made. Granted, I lost my home and much of my cash as a result of the rampant greed that has infected this country. I don't feel sorry for myself, so please, don't you.
What I am asking is for all of you to add your voice to mine. I am asking for access to safe affordable housing for all Americans. No family should be homeless in our country, just as no family should be hungry.
The truth is that we are all at the mercy of fate. A long illness, an accident, a layoff, all can lead quickly to homelessness. Right now, in most communities, there are no shelters that accept families. Men and boys over 16 go to the men's shelter. It is a dangerous place. Women and children go to the woman's shelter. Right now, in my city, there is a waiting list to get into that shelter. Five hundred yards from my room is a camp where a dozen families live, in tents. Today it is raining and it is cold. I thank my higher power for my warm dry room.
I often read comments about the Homeless that are posted by those who have never experienced true poverty. Homelessness is not limited to the mentaly ill, to citizens with addictions, to felons, to the uneducated, or to those who can't manage money well. This is a circumstance that can happen to anyone, at any time, for any reason.
That could be me sleeping in a tent, on the cold wet ground. Or, it could be you.