Health & Disability
Christine
Alamance County. Aid recipient.
Caring for Sick Parents
I was enrolled at GTCC [Guilford Technical College]. I was living in a family home with my parents taking care of them. My father got really bad. He started having seizures, which they thought were strokes. Well, things started going south at that point Continue reading
“Peyton”
Alamance County, NC. Aid recipient.
Illness Makes Finding Work Hard
So I got laid off about four years ago, maybe five. Anyway, so I went back to school, took up appliance repairing, GTCC [Guilford Technical Community College], but as soon as I finished the program, which is about a year, I had a stroke. So it hinders my employability now because no one wants to hire a person who had a stroke Continue reading
“Johnny”
Disabled But Still Expected to Work —Alamance County, NC, resident— Well, I’ve had several experiences with my daddy-in-law. He was unable to work; he was blind in one eye, and he lost use of his left arm. And he went … Continue reading
“Cindy”
Alamance County resident.
Change in Circumstances
So, I didn’t know my daughter’s dad was on welfare until she said something about it. Well, she didn’t know it was welfare; she asked me about a grocery store receipt. I’m like, “What? I mean, how does this man go from driving a Mercedes and living in a fancy house to welfare and food stamps?” Continue reading
Tracy S.
Alamance County, NC, aid provider and former recipient.
The Stigma of Temporary Aid
My ex-husband and I owned a restaurant and the restaurant, it started not going very well. And so he actually started having a drinking problem. So at that point, I decided to move out. So my son, who was three or four at the time, we moved into an apartment… Continue reading
Alexsandria Elliott
“The Undeserving Poor,” by Kristina Cooke, David Rohde, and Ryan McNeill. The Atlantic. Dec. 20, 2012. Seven years ago, Alexsandria Elliott, now 37, said she developed hereditary periodontal disease. Last year, the infections grew so severe that a doctor told her she … Continue reading
Shaun Case
“The Undeserving Poor,” by Kristina Cooke, David Rohde, and Ryan McNeill. The Atlantic. Dec. 20, 2012. The 34-year-old Indiana native has learning disabilities and endured a childhood of abuse. Relatives say he was thrown through a plate-glass widow by his grandmother … Continue reading
Mike and Glenn
“One Brother Reaches Out to Another Across the Economic Divide,” by Rachel L. Swarns. New York Times, Dec. 15, 2013. Photo by Nicole Bengevino/New York Times. Mr. Remboulis knows that behind every number is a family and a story. His … Continue reading