United Way Center for Financial Stability steers single mother of five on the road to success
After becoming unemployed in 2017, Carmen, a single mother of five, quickly found herself struggling to make ends meet. Feeling very disheartened, she turned to Branches and the United Way Center for Financial Stability for help and guidance.
The center immediately worked with her landlord and provided rental assistance to prevent her from losing her home. The next challenging hurdle would be helping Carmen secure a job so she could continue providing for her young family. She was also paired with a financial coach, Nydia.
Having worked in the same restaurant for six years, Carmen felt she didn’t have the necessary job skills to find a job. In the process of helping her build her resume, Nydia, Carmen’s representative at the Center, began digging a little deeper into Carmen’s past experiences. She discovered that over the span of 10 years, Carmen had served as grievance manager, president and treasurer on the parent’s board at her children’s school.
Much to her surprise, Carmen was ecstatic to learn that all of her previous volunteer roles could contribute to her work experience. Together, Carmen and Nydia were able to build a complete resume, giving her the confidence she needed to go through the interviewing process and get back into the workforce.
Not only did Carmen find a job, but she was recently promoted to a managerial position. Carmen’s brush with poverty led her down a road of self-discovery and self-assurance, empowering her to get on a fast track to financial stability.
She has continued her relationship with the Center which has guided her in setting up a 401K, helped her build her credit, allowed her to save $3,000 for emergencies and $8,000 to her savings due to a tax refund. Her next goal is to purchase a reliable car through the Center’s Ways to Work Program.
“The United Way Center for Financial Stability and Branches have allowed me to get my life in order. They have given me the guidance and confidence I needed to become self-sufficient and provide for my family,” Carmen says.
Carmen has come much further than she had ever planned, and there’s no stopping her now.