One of the newest grants, Homelessness Prevention and Diversion, has assisted three families who were at risk of being evicted from their homes this month.
The self-explanatory grant allows families to remain housed and out of our shelter. It recognizes that the key to preventing people from becoming unhoused is providing support when they are one bill away from facing eviction.
One family that received the benefits of this grant consisted of a hard-working, single mom and her two children. She had been working at the same job, and they had been living in the same home for 2+ years when she was faced with an unexpected medical procedure.
For most of the mom’s adult life, she had health insurance through TennCare. She later became eligible for private insurance through her employer. Recently, an unexpected procedure forced her to decide whether to pay rent or to go forward with the procedure.
Even families with stable footing but little to no savings, like this family, can be easily knocked off of balance by an unexpected bill. The Homelessness Prevention and Diversion grant is specifically designed for situations like these. It allowed Family Promise to cover two months of the family’s rent, the mom returned to good health, and a huge weight was lifted, knowing that she could successfully keep paying for her rent and taking care of her family.
She can confidently resume taking care of herself and her family; she is stabilized.
