Our own Consortium board chair, Jen Peterson, also the president of the Twin Cities chapter of the Association for Children for Enforcement of Support (ACES), recently wrote a letter to the editor of the South Washington County Bulletin about her experience with a local food shelf. In addition to the letter being printed, Jen was also interviewed by National Public Radio (visit the NPR website, www.npr.org to hear Jen's interview). We found Jen's story so compelling and important that we asked if we could share it with our readers here on the blog, to which Jen graciously agreed. Here is Jen's letter (edited slightly for length), as it appeared in the Bulletin.
You may think I'm crazy for writing this about such a personal experience but I think people need to know that a Food Shelf Experience isn't a bad thing and that it's every day people, your friends and neighbors, who are having to rely on this "Blessing" in our community these days.
After months of trying to stretch our grocery dollars and put off the inevitable I recently had to give up the fight and I went to the Friends In Need Food Shelf in St. Paul Park. This was just a couple weeks ago and it was the first time since 2004. My husband and I struggled with having to do this again, but it's tough times that make pride a little easier to swallow. I was used to this as a formerly single mom of 4. I was no stranger to the food shelf. The food shelf was a regular source of food for me and my kids during the many times that my ex wasn’t paying child support and my own income wasn‘t enough.
Back in 04, there were a few issues going on that were making it tough for us to have enough food for our family. I was working 2 part time jobs with pretty flexible schedules so I could be around more for the kids and avoid the dreaded huge daycare expense. My husband was working full time. In my free time I was working on representing myself in a lawsuit against my ex husband’s former employer for failing to withhold the court ordered child support between 1999-2001. In the early months of 04, as in most years, I was receiving little to no child support from my ex as his employment is seasonal and he didn't always qualify for unemployment during those times. My husband and I had fallen for that whole sub-prime mortgage mess and were in a mortgage that had a high interest rate. We had a car break down and a big repair bill. My Grandpa became ill (and dying) and needed care so I was taking time off of work to help in his care. You know, the typical stuff that happens that can push an already tight budget over the edge. Well, since then we've been blessed by better jobs, more regular child support payments and an inheritance from Grandpa and finally, the settlement on that child support lawsuit. What a relief. Our family financial security was stabilizing. It seemed like we were just getting comfortable in the middle class...
