Program Highlight: Emergency Services Financial Assistance

In times of need, Lori has shopped for clothing, receiving help with “scrubs” for her work; received food from the food shelf; and she has been helped financially with fuel cards.

Since January 2023, Lori has been experiencing homelessness, and gas cards from Emergency Services Financial Assistance kept her warm all winter inside her vehicle. She also was coached on how to successfully search for an apartment. When Lori found an apartment, she received an apartment application fee. She had a job lined up but couldn’t leave her dog in the car while she worked. (Remember how bitterly cold this winter was?)

Lori also made use of the “Multi-Pass” feature of the Catholic Charities Food Shelf so she would not go hungry. As soon as Lori found housing, she could go to work and start getting back on her feet. Each month she visited Financial Assistance and was given information about different resources that may be available to her. In May, Lori stopped by to let us know she was so grateful because she was now in an apartment, had started her job, and her dog was happy to be running around his new home!

In 2022, Catholic Charities Emergency Services Financial Assistance helped 4,967 people. These individuals received assistance in the form of gas vouchers, bus passes, prescription and medical co-pays, fees for birth certificates and state identification documents and apartment application fees.

Learn more about this program at ccstcloud.org/financial-services/financial-assistance