Most Between Friends clients are people who face financial difficulties, often because of financial abuse they have survived. The added challenges of the COVID-19 crisis have placed adult survivors and their children at even greater financial risk in recent months.
As a result, our direct client emergency assistance program, which provides financial assistance to survivors as they become financially independent from their abusers, has become even more vital. The fund covers costs for necessities for survivors and their children like utility bills, rent, medical costs, and living expenses. We’ve been supported in this work by the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund. Ana’s story is just one example of why this program is so essential. (Ana’s name has been changed to protect her anonymity.)
Ana has been a part of the Between Friends client community for about two years. She initially reached out to Between Friends to address multiple abusive relationships in which she experienced physical, emotional, sexual, and financial abuse. She attended group services before plunging fearlessly into the work of individual counseling: examining her own trauma history, belief systems, and family dynamics, while learning to celebrate her inherent strengths and passions.
When 2020 began, Ana was finally living freely with her two young sons after years of being carefully monitored and intimidated into staying home. She could enforce family norms without being undermined, and spend quality time with her sons without fear of abuse. She had recently been able to re-enter the workforce, and found pride in working for a childcare service, while also enjoying being a single parent. Then the COVID-19 virus forced Illinois to shelter in place.
The pandemic not only robbed Ana of her ability to work, but also threatened her life’s new healthy foundation. She told Between Friends that she has been very concerned about how long the pandemic will last, because her job requires a lot of direct person-to-person contact. In addition, she was worried about how much the pandemic would slow down an already very backlogged U-Visa application process.
By receiving some rental assistance now, Ana has been able to continue providing a safe and stable home environment for herself and her sons. She has then been able to put the money that she has saved towards the health and well being of her family.