𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐫 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐧, 𝐒𝐚𝐥, 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬
Life can change in an instant, a lesson that became all too real for former Coalition resident, Sal. After a lifetime of careful financial planning and hard work, Sal—a senior citizen of Central Florida—found himself facing a nightmare he never anticipated: the loss of his home. Unforeseen medical emergencies drained his savings, leaving him without a roof over his head and nowhere to turn—until Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida stepped in.
Sal’s journey began in Miami, where he arrived as a young man fleeing the Cuban Revolution with his family. He worked hard all his life, meticulously saving for his retirement. However, when he retired at 70, health issues he never anticipated—heart problems, spinal stenosis, and other geriatric issues—began to emerge. Medical bills quickly piled up, and despite his best efforts to manage them, Sal found himself in a financial crisis. “I was always responsible, always paid my bills on time. But suddenly, I was in a situation where I just couldn’t keep up,” he recalls. The rising cost of living, particularly his rent, soon outpaced his dwindling savings, leaving him without a place to call home.
Sal’s experience underscores the often-overlooked reality that homelessness can happen to anyone, even those who plan carefully for their future. When his landlord increased his rent by $900 a month, Sal was forced to leave his home of four years. With nowhere else to go, Sal turned to a community drop-in shelter, where he enrolled in a three-month program that kept him off the streets. However, as the program came to an end, he faced the terrifying prospect of homelessness once again. That’s when he was referred to Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida.
“The Coalition let me in, and I honestly believe they saved my life,” Sal says. “With my health issues, I wouldn’t have lasted long out there.”
Sal found not just shelter, but a community at the Coalition. . .
To read the full story, click here: https://lnkd.in/euYiVgjs