Stability is a big word. But sometimes, the things that help someone get there are surprisingly ordinary.
A warm sweatshirt. A backpack. A pair of work boots for a new job. The applications fee for an apartment. A consultation with an immigration attorney.
During Catholic Charities of Oregon’s Summer of Stability campaign, we’re raising funds to help people throughout our community move from crisis toward something more secure. And while the challenges facing the people we serve can be enormous, sometimes a relatively small expense can remove one more obstacle standing in the way.
Less than $50 Can Meet Immediate Needs
For someone experiencing homelessness, $12.90 can provide a pair of sweatpants through our Housing Transitions Program. $16.99 can provide a hat and gloves. $23.99 can buy a hooded sweatshirt. And $39,99 purchases a backpack for someone who needs a reliable way to carry their belongings.
For an immigrant working toward permanent residency, $30 can cover the mandatory fingerprinting fee required as part of the application process.
These aren’t extravagant purchases. That’s precisely the point. When money is already stretched impossibly thin, even a basic necessity or required fee can become a barrier.
$50 to $100 Can Open Doors
Sometimes stability depends on getting through the next door.
At Kenton Women’s Village, $50 can cover an application fee for a resident seeking permanent housing. $75 can provide work boots or shoes for someone beginning a new job.
A gift of $100 can help cover an initial consultation with an immigration attorney, giving someone the opportunity to have their case evaluated and better understand their legal options.
And $150 can provide a household kit with essentials for a family building a new life. Other practical needs include $80 cleaning kits and $50 personal-care kits for people served through our housing and refugee programs.
$300 to $520 Can Turn Housing into a Home and Opportunity into Work
Getting an apartment is a tremendous milestone. But an empty apartment isn’t quite a home.
About $300 can provide a bed and frame for a Kenton Women’s Village resident moving into permanent housing. A $450 trip to Community Warehouse can provide basic household furnishings and their delivery, helping someone begin this next chapter with the things most of us take for granted.
For an immigrant who is eligible to seek employment authorization, $520 can cover the application fee required to request authorization to work legally in the United States. The ability to work can be a critical step toward supporting oneself and building long-term stability.
$500 and Beyond Can Make the Next Chapter Possible
Moving into permanent housing comes with the security deposit, another significant hurdle. For residents leaving KWV, that can range from $500 to $1,100.
Larger gifts can also strengthen the spaces and services hundreds of people rely upon.
As our Housing Transitions Program expands, roughly $257 can purchase a new table and chair set for the cafe, while $150 can add new bookshelves to the library. Multiple sets of each will help furnish the space.
At KWV, about $1,348 can buy a new washer-and-dryer set, while $1,999 can provide an outdoor storage shed, which provides practical infrastructure that makes the village work better for the women who call it home.
Stability is Built One Need at a Time
There is no single price tag for stability.
For one person, it might begin with a $13 pair of sweatpants. For another, it’s $75 worth of work shoes that allow them to show up for their first day on the job. It might be $450 worth of furniture arriving at a new apartment, or $520 that helps someone pursue authorization to earn a living.
Each is one piece of something much bigger. A safe place to live, meaningful work, legal security, dignity and the opportunity to move forward.
Summer is almost over. The need for stability isn’t.
Please donate to our Summer of Stability campaign. Your gift, whatever its size, can help provide the practical resources need to take their next step and begin to steady their lives.