Sandra* has a disability that causes her a lot of pain. She relies on her electric wheelchair to get around and maintain independence. When Sandra’s enhanced FoodShare benefits ended, she couldn’t afford to buy both healthy food and pay her electric bill. Sandra faced a difficult choice: purchase food or keep her power on—the power she needed not just for basic living but also for her mobility. 

Sandra contacted WayForward Resources for help preventing her power being disconnected. WayForward was able to send some funds toward her electric bill and provided her with food deliveries from our pantry twice a month. “It’s been a huge help,” Sandra tells us.

Her story reflects the stark challenges faced by Americans with disabilities in meeting their basic needs. According to the USDA’s Economic Research Service (2023), food insecurity affects 33% of U.S. households with an adult who is out of the labor force due to disability, compared to just 10% of households without adults with a disability. This means households with an adult with a disability are over three times more likely to struggle with consistent access to adequate food.

The connection between disability and food insecurity is further documented by Feeding America’s 2022 research. Among the 79 million older adults over 60 in the United States, those with disabilities experience food insecurity at more than twice the rate of older adults without disabilities. These statistics highlight how disabilities can create compounding challenges, often forcing people to choose between essential needs like food, medicine, and utilities.

Your donations to WayForward help neighbors like Sandra maintain their independence and access to nutritious food. When you give, you provide critical support that provides housing stability and food security, and helps our community members meet their basic needs. 

*A representative photo and name have been used to maintain client confidentiality

Food and housing are the basic building blocks of stability. When we work together, we can build a strong community where everyone has food to eat and a warm place to sleep.

*Jenna had always ensured that she and her son had the basics covered – a safe place to sleep, enough food and funds to cover medical appointments, clothes and other essentials. Then last year, her apartment rent rose beyond what she could afford. The stability she had worked so hard to maintain disappeared and the little family suddenly found themselves homeless. “I was afraid, devastated, and demoralized,” Jenna said. She temporarily moved back in with her parents, but the situation was not sustainable. Unsure how to move forward, she felt like she didn’t have any options.

That’s when Jenna learned about WayForward. She began visiting the food pantry, relieving the stress of knowing where their next meal would from. She found free clothes for her son at the Clothing Center. Meanwhile, Jenna enrolled in one of WayForward’s housing programs which provided rental assistance as well as case management to keep her and her son in stable housing and avoid a return to homelessness. “With my case manager’s help, I was able to secure a two-bedroom apartment this year in a safe and beautiful part of town!” Jenna is also preparing for the future, “I have taken classes to help me budget wisely and learn to manage my money so when I have to pay rent alone next year, I will be able to do so with confidence,” she  said. Jenna is no longer afraid for the future. Instead, she sees a path forward filled with possibilities. *name and identifying details changed

The basic building blocks matter. Everyone needs healthy food and stable housing to thrive. Children do better in school and have better mental and physical health outcomes when they have reliable access to food. Families who stay in their homes and avoid eviction have stronger employment opportunities, lower level of toxic stress and fewer hospital visits.

Community support makes successes like Jenna and her son’s possible. Give today to build a strong community.

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At the age of 67, Vicki feels she is stable in her housing for the first time in 10 years.

She credits the support she received last year from WayForward. The financial assistance from our Housing Stability program helped cover entry costs so Vicki could move out of our service area into subsidized housing for seniors in another community. WayForward case managers work with Housing Stability program participants to solve immediate needs and work toward their long-term goals.

Once Vicki was settled in her new home, she was able to pay closer attention to her health. A month after relocating, she discovered she had cancer. It took some time to convince her doctors, but after surgical treatment she is now cancer-free.

Vicki says she gives a great deal of credit for her stability to the Housing Stability program and told her case manager that WayForward helped save her life.

 

When Rafa*, 21, and his younger sister Gabriela, 19, came to WayForward, they were staying in an overcrowded apartment with a relative.

The siblings have lived in the United States for a couple of years while their parents remained in Mexico due to immigration issues. In the meantime, the environment they were living in became increasingly hostile and complicated. It did not feel like home.

A community member referred Rafa and Gabriela to WayForward’s Connections Program, which assists people in doubled-up living situations with finding and moving into homes of their own. With support from WayForward’s Connections bilingual case manager, the two young adults learned everything about the process of finding housing, including what to look for and potential costs. Within the first month, WayForward found an apartment that was perfect for them, both in price and location. They moved in over the summer and, after a long and complicated journey, they are motivated about the future and working hard on their next steps to be stable.

For Rafa and Gabriela, having a case manager who speaks their language and understands their culture meant the world as they navigated this major step to adulthood. They trust that their future is off to a great start and they don’t feel alone anymore. In the words of the community member who has kept in touch with the brother and sister over the last year: “You guys are changing lives.”

The pair were recently joined by a younger sibling who joined their household to finish high school. They recently shared their experience with their case manager.

How did the Connections program help you move into your own apartment?

The housing navigation along with the financial support that our family has received from the Connections/Wayforward program has helped us to move on from our vulnerable situation. Being a new renter and also a head of household at this young age it is hard to navigate the systems and also afford housing on our own in this market.

How has your life changed since you started working with WayForward?

There has been a positive change in our lives. Thanks to the support of WayForward and our caring case manager, they have made a huge impact on the well-being of me and my siblings. The most important being that we now have a place to call home. I am now even saving to get a car as my next goal.

What would you tell a friend or neighbor if they asked you to describe what it was like working with WayForward?

The hard work of the staff at WayForward makes a real difference. This is an experience where I have learned and felt supported. I would recommend for anyone in need to reach out since their work and support is exceptional.

*names and identifying details changed

When Carlito first heard about WayForward, he and his wife, Erin, were out of options for how they would continue to pay rent and have enough food to eat.

A temporary job Carlito was working had come to an end. Meanwhile a more permanent one he had targeted for his next step was so far not offering him full-time hours, so he worked when he could. One day, Carlito almost ran out of gas to get to work before he could afford to fill up the tank again. In the middle of this stressful run of events that followed the loss of regular income, two women he knew told him WayForward might be able to help. Carlito was skeptical. “That doesn’t exist,” he told them.

Still, the couple reached out and connected with WayForward, where a case manager worked with them to provide one-time eviction prevention funds to cover their rent and allow them to stay in their home. They also began visiting the food pantry to help fill the gaps in their budget and have appreciated choosing from a variety of proteins that they ration carefully — from chicken to chorizo to bacon. “Those are staples for our dinners for six days,” he says.

Carlito says the experience has changed his life. He’s never felt more welcomed than he does at WayForward by staff and volunteers. Rather than judgment, he feels support. “You’re sustaining us and you could care less about our race, religion, or political affiliation,” he says. “Working with WayForward was purely a lifeline. It gave me hope in humanity.”

WayForward’s Housing Stability Program is focused on eviction prevention and is full of success stories like Carlito’s. We provided financial assistance to more than 600 households last year to program participants who received one-time funds to cover rent, utility bills or unexpected auto repairs.

When you support WayForward, you join us in making it possible for more people in our community to stay in their homes and get the nutritious food they need. Your donation today can help make an immediate difference and will be used where it’s most needed.

Some of the people who look to our food pantry to help stretch their budgets get to know the staff and volunteers over time.

One of our guests — who has been visiting weekly — shared that he recently had cancer surgery.

He spoke about his battle to regain his health with our food access managers and how important the pantry was to him through it all.

“It helps to feel like you have people standing behind you, and you all did that for me,” he said.

Demand at our pantry is triple what it was two years ago.

Community support has been a critical part of how WayFoward and other food pantries in Dane County meet the need.

You can make a difference and help us continue to meet the need by planning a food drive, shopping directly from our Amazon Wish List or donating today.

Lia and Sofia* had only a few things in common when they first met.

They were both mothers of young children and had come from the same country. They were also doubled up together in the apartment of someone they did not know very well.

With support from their case manager, they decided to become roommates when they enrolled in WayForward’s Connections program. The move allowed the two families to leave their overcrowded living situation.

In June 2022, WayForward launched the Connections Program to focus on people who are living doubled up without housing of their own. Since then, 16 families have graduated from the program and no longer need financial assistance from WayForward. Now, with help from a new pilot program grant from the Dane County Department of Human Services, Connections is expanding to help more double-up households find stability.

Over the last year, Lia and Sofia worked with the Connections case manager on budgeting, tools for being reliable tenants and understanding lease agreements. The case manager works with program participants in obtaining stable housing, and helps them navigate issues like a lack of credit and rental history. Households stay in the program for 12 months, with financial assistance decreasing over the course of the year as participants become self-sufficient in their new housing.

Both women have found work and more recently, they parted ways as roommates to move into housing of their own. They remain friends and recently shared updates with their case manager.

“We will always be grateful for your support,” Lia wrote. “We are all very stable and grateful to you for all the hard work.”

“I wanted to let you know that I have already moved with my son to our new apartment and everything is going well, thank God,” Sofia wrote. “We have work, health and stability. We are very grateful for all the support you have given us since the first day we met you.”

*names and identifying details changed

Moving to Dane County promised a brighter future for David*, a single father with two young children.

He had been accepted to UW-Madison to study special education, a field with strong employment prospects after graduation. David also secured a full-time job to provide for his kids, Michael and Sara. But despite working day and night juggling school and work, David was in danger of falling behind on rent and losing the stable home he was building for his children.

Rent has risen faster here than anywhere else in the country, which threatened the dream David was working so hard to reach. A friend referred him to WayForward Resources, where a case manager connected David with rental assistance from our Housing Stability Program so he could maintain a home for his young children.

WayForward provided David with much-needed relief and peace of mind that allowed him to focus on getting his degree and taking care of his kids.

Thanks to our programs, David believes our community is where his dreams for his young family can become a reality. “I moved to Madison for a better and happier life; we felt as if we fit in.”

*name and identifying details changed

When Rafa*, 21, and his younger sister Gabriela, 19, came to WayForward, they were staying in an overcrowded apartment with a relative.

The siblings have lived in the United States for a couple of years while their parents remained in Mexico due to immigration issues. In the meantime, the environment they were living in became increasingly hostile and complicated. It did not feel like home.

A community member referred Rafa and Gabriela to WayForward’s Connections Program, which assists people in doubled-up living situations with finding and moving into homes of their own. With support from WayForwards’s Connections bilingual case manager, the two young adults learned everything about the process of finding housing, including what to look for and potential costs.

Within the first month, WayForward found an apartment that was perfect for them, both in price and location. They moved in over the summer and, after a long and complicated journey, they are motivated about the future and working hard on their next steps to be stable.

For Rafa and Gabriela, having a case manager who speaks their language and understands their culture meant the world as they navigated this major step to adulthood. They trust that their future is off to a great start and they don’t feel alone anymore. 

In the words of the community member who has kept in touch with the brother and sister over the last year: “You guys are changing lives.”

*names and identifying details changed

 

Kathleen and Roger* were overwhelmed when they came to WayForward for assistance.

Both in their 80s, the couple faced thousands of dollars in medical bills from Roger’s cancer treatment denied by their insurance plan.

Their WayForward case manager referred them to a patient advocate to assist with navigating their health insurance appeals, offering Kathleen some much-needed hope. She also connected them to the Aging and Disability Resource Center to learn more about potential eligibility for public benefits.

Kathleen was relieved to get some help and to learn from her WayForward case manager that they could use the food pantry to make ends meet and access nutritious food when Roger needs it most.

“I went last week and it was wonderful,” she told her case manager. “We got four apples and my husband ate one every day.”

WayForward’s food pantry is open to all Dane County residents who need it and the number of visits has risen 237% since January 2022.

*names and identifying details changed