Posted on 01/02/2010 1:10:48 AM PST by Daisyjane69
I had an experience tonight that upset me so much, I can't stop thinking about it.
There was a woman there with 3 young children (6, 4, & 2 yrs. I'd guess). She was doing more laundry than any human being I'd ever seen; every flat surface in that place and every basket had a least a foot of clothing on it. She was very nice, asking her kids to move, so I could get around in there. I put my things in the dryer and left, returning later.
My stuff wasn't dry yet, so we started to talk. Turns out she was doing ALL the clothing they owned. Bottom line is this:
Husband lost his job as a landscaper (but paid by the boss as an independent contractor). No unemployment check.
They were subsisting on her disability check of $ 655. I forgot to mention that she clearly had something physically wrong with her. I didn't want to ask but it appeared to me that she had MS, we had a family friend with it years ago.
They were staying at a local hotel (all 5 in a room) and that's the reason for holding off on laundry; the onsite machines charged about 3 X the laundromat. So how were they getting by without clean clothes? On Fridays, the local secondhand store has Free Fridays where they put out things they want to move...free for the taking. In other words, for her 2 school age kids to wear clean clothes to school they were wearing clean donations.
The hotel costs $ 675 a month. Utah passed some sort of tax this past year that goes into effect when you are in a hotel longer than 28 days (becoming official Utah residents, I think) the hotel has to pay a tax, which they pass on, of course. Evidently these folks came up here from AZ looking for work.
A decent car pulled up and a man came out. It was her husband. By now I'm nosy, of course. (In case you're wondering, I had to put 4 more quarters in the dryer for 40 more minutes. Those comforters are murder to dry.) I could hear them talking amongst themselves about what time they had to return the car. Evidently they borrowed it from someone just for this laundry trip. While the husband was looking for work, the fuel pump on their own car went bad. He got a bus ride home, leaving the car off the street for more than 24 hours and St. George PD not only ticketed but towed the car! I know these cities need money but geez.....
The funny thing about this lady is she wasn't complaining at all. She didn't have an attitude about the gov't owes her this or that. She just folded and folded and told me things as I asked about them. But, she wasn't sure where they would be able to find work, as in which state.
Her husband, in the meantime, had taken some of the finished laundry back to the hotel, evidently. When he returned for the next load he opened up a subway sandwich...one of the small ones. I don't know what the size is, 6"? All I know is my 23 year old son could eat 3 of those in 5 minutes flat. And he split it with her! This is at dinner time, right after the Rose Bowl..'bout 6:00 here. I was like WTF, is this dinner?
When my stuff was done I told her I brought too many quarters and to take them in case she ran short. All I had left from my own brief shopping trip was $ 20 and I handed it to her. She protested, saying "but you're out of work, too" but I said I don't have 3 little kids that are depending on me. She tried to hand it back saying "He doesn't want us accepting any help." I said, then stick it in your bra and don't tell him. I got in my car and came home.
Now....I'd like Mr. Obama to tell me WHEN THE HELL IS HE GOING TO WORRY ABOUT JOBS? Especially for people like this family.
And how the hell does he justify ANY kind of AMNESTY even being considered when there are families like this around who want NO handouts but a job???
I’m sure there are thousands of families like that out there. More to come, you can be sure of that.
Kind of you to help, very kind.
Just glad the her kids are able to stay in school.
Our two party government on all levels need an overhaul.
Americans first in 2010.
GOOD on you, Daisyjane69.
When it rains, it pours. That poor family and to think their car was both ticketed and towed. They’ll be hard pressed to ever get it back. This family sounds exactly the type that deserves to be ‘temporarily adopted’ by the community. Where are the churches in times like this? I think they’re there and willing to help. In fact, I think the churches are looking to help. Perhaps they’re not members of a church in the area and that’s sad.
The family sounds very proud and that’s a good trait, but in times of need, charitable organizations, like churches are there to assist. I hope they find one soon. May God bless them and lead them to Him.
Interesting encounter. Could be a scam, but if it is the fact she pulls it off in part by working and apparently coordinating a pretty bare-bones and demanding life would be unique.
There are certainly people in this world living exactly the life she presents. And they are the ones for whom welfare was originally intended to help. You know the old line, “A hand up, not a hand out.”
Could be she does laundry for the neighborhood to help make ends meet and has found a way to supplement her income with her hard luck story.
I am a very generous person, just ask my wife who cringes anytime I tip or encounter someone down on their luck. In this case I would take her at face value and give what I could. If it's a scam the money won't make a big difference to me. If not, she certainly needs it as badly as I do.
BUT (I rush to add before I'm lynched)...
It IS his job to make conditions such that businesses can grow.
His bailout put billions of dollars where it can help out his little dem pals, and big businesses that give big donations.
As for giving aid to those businesses which actually create jobs for folks like this?
The answer is, that "liberal compassion" we've always been told about. They are for altering society, and who cares how many bodies pile up?
If he's acting as an employee, but being treated as an independent contractor for compensation purposes, than he can probably sue his former employer and also qualify for unemployment. Just saying.
Thanks gang, but I did what nearly every freeper here would have done. So no credit necessary or even desired.
What’s bothering me so much is, as far as I can tell, this family didn’t do this to themselves. Not some single mom spitting out kids she can’t afford. Certainly not a welfare family. Kids were well-behaved, polite, and helpful to their mom, I noticed.
I did ask her about approaching the church (nearly all are LDS here) but they were unable to help her at this time. I imagine they are overwhelmed with requests. The newspaper is begging for contributions to the food banks. There are also a lot of illegals here, so that isn’t helping things. The Mormons are very generous, so I’m figuring if they say “no” it’s because they have nothing to give right now. I did tell her to call the local Catholic church on Monday; most folks don’t realize there is one here in S. Utah, but there is. Like the Mormons, the Catholic church won’t require membership in order to help someone.
I guess it was startling a bit. It’s one thing to read these cold statistics in the paper, but quite another to see it in front of you.
These are scary times.
And Obama has pissed away 1/4 of his term, leaving people like this out to dry. While bailing out investment banks so they can pay their bonuses.
And I’m getting mad.
I agree with your entire post. He is not supposed to create jobs. But he is supposed to get out of the way for others to create them.
But nooooooooooooo...he’s gotta spend 1/2 his term trying to pass a job killing HCB, trying to get cap and trade, and of course that world class stimulus plan that created exactly ONE job that I can vouch for locally. And that job lasted 120 days, btw.
Yes, that’s a sad story. I know how you feel, you’d really like to help these people more. They didn’t have an attitude like the gubmint owed them something, they just sought to work it through.
Here’s what I find so perplexing, why most of the country isn’t in near open revolt! Millions of people are out of work, and have been for a long time, but they remain passive, quietly suffering. Not that that’s bad, just that people are collectively passive.
IMHO I think much of this passivity and resignation of fate is directly tied to the corrupt MSM. If this were a Republican administration we all know with certainty that the MSM would be wailing and bashing their teeth as they fomented utter resentment.
However, under Obama, any I’ll event is “unexpected” and basically glossed over. Millions are out of work and I can’t tell you how many stories I have seen extolling the virtues of unemployment and how it was a time to refocus, spend time with the family, pursue other personal enriching hobbies, etc. Can you imagine such talk if this were Bush??
So I understand why this has pricked you thoughts so, and I hope these people find work and get bac on their feet soon, but the reality is, I fear, that Obama is really screwing things up, and while there may be pockets of modest improvements sporatically around the country, the reality is that we are in deep weeds and trillions in debt.
Unfortunately, I think Obama will simply keep flapping his gums and the corrupt MSM will keep proping him up, so unless people throw the bums out in the next elections, they will have no one to blame but themselves, for in reality, if the elections don’t significantly change things this November and in 2012, then people will have confirmed through their vote that this is what they want for their lives and for their futures.
You keep your mad, too.
We're probably gonna need both, by and by ...
He will go down as a hero to the Chomsky/Zinn/Hollywood booboise left for bringing socialism--which always leaves piles of dead in its wake--to this country.
I read St. George and I thought “Utah” because I’ve been in your city several times, but I remember checking your state flag a few nights ago when we were all on the Scott Brown thread and noted Ohio.
Yep, the illegals NEED to go home or be sent home. America shouldn’t be their caretaker and I know I sound hard-hearted, but laws are laws and they need to be enforced. We have own citizens out of work.
Daisyjane69, I think it’s good that you’re getting mad. It’s a call to action. I hope I get good and mad soon. I think I need to get out more.
I hope they go the the Catholic Church on Sunday. They’ll get the help they need.
Pray for her and Hers to get thru the Hard Times.. Bless Ya.
Yeah, Ohio is “home” to me but I live here in St. George now. But I’m going to move in a couple months to Texas so I can be closer to family and find a job. We’re getting inundated here with people from AZ and NV. And yes, the amigos need to head home. It’s bad enough that they are draining our state gov’t of services (food stamps, medical) but now they are ripping the charitable safety net as well. The Mormons have a very well organized and supported safety net that is open to all. But now, even they are scrambling.
Utah had, I believe the largest percentage leap in food stamp use, the last time I heard the stats...a couple weeks ago.
Two thoughts.
First, I wouldn’t have told her not to tell her husband about the 20 bucks. That’s a lot to hide in a family with 655 coming in. If the kid even mentions he got a whole cheeseburger today, the father will want to know how.
Second, there are small towns in America where you can rent to own a sturdy old house with a backyard, heat it, feed the kids well, and not have to worry about rampant crime, with only $655 a month coming in. I’d have mentioned that right quick! A hotel is no place to raise kids.
Speaking of kids...there are govt programs that help feed young children...
http://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/aboutwic/
and at least in some states, the children get free medical care. If these folks are not aware of these programs...well, nobody on disability can be unaware of them.
You’re prolly right about the hiding the money stuff. I imagine that she waited until I left and then said “That lady just forced me to take this” lol. Hopefully.
True about the living in the hotel part. I’ve driven past these local hotels. Unless their part of a national chain, I’d be nervous about the other “clientele.” It appears to me that these places cater to people wanting a cheap place to flop while looking for work.
I swear, this is like a bad dream. Reminds me of watching “The Grapes of Wrath” about a hundred years ago when I was in school...whole families having to pack up and cross the country to find work.
You are a good, kind and caring person, and I’m not overstating that at all. God bless you and yours in this New Year.
His former employer was probably acting illegally by paying his as an independent contractor but that is water under the bridge. When the unemployment funds are flush many times they will look the other way and pay out whether you qualify or not. These are not those times.
The Utah transient hotel tax should actually drop off completely at the end of a month. There have been some small increases by county in Utah but no major State changes that I know of. When we put crews on extended job we will often book a month and a day per room for just this reason. The savings should be around 15%. Hotels often will not like the extra paperwork or they will pocket the collected tax. It is worth a few phone calls.
If you should see these people again tell them this: Get involved in a Church and make their plight known. Very, very often someone has work that they have been putting off and they will make a go decision just to help out. He MUST do a good job. One job will lead to another. The unemployment office is just a list of people waiting in line. He needs to get out and hustle.
I know a landscaper in roughly the same situation. He always has jobs lined up even in this economy. He has to work seven days a week but he rarely makes less than $100 a day. You have to talk. You have to ask for the work.
Have him talk to the city. In some cases they have provisions for struggling families to get impound fees waived. In other cases those fees get lost in the shuffle. Go as high up as you can. There are a lot of paper pushers out there but there are also a lot of good hearted people. You need someone with the power to get it done.
These people need to make some noise. Not with hostility or aggression but they need to let people know what their situation is. They are Americans and this is a giving nation.
May God bless.
Woman in my church, husband very ill, social worker stops by, asks her to sign a document which it turns out entitles her to money.
A few weeks later the checks start to arrive. She asks me what is going on - I tell her it’s money to help her while her husband is ill. ‘Oh, I didn’t know. He is my husband, I must look after him” she says.
Next day she sends the checks back with a kindly note saying she doesn’t want the money, she has enough money to look after hime and will make cutbacks if necessary.
Bless her. He has since died. She has been an inspiration to the whole church.
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