Brenda’s Story

A Latina single mother named Brenda* with four children called El Centro de la Raza seeking rental assistance. Brenda and two of her children contracted COVID-19. The entire family was quarantined in their home, so Brenda was no longer working and could not pay rent since February.

In May, our staff assisted Brenda by providing rental assistance for that month, but Brenda had three months of back rent to pay. Our team advocated for Brenda by talking to the apartment manager about writing off some of Brenda’s debt. Fortunately, the apartment manager was willing to write off all three months of her debt. We provided Brenda with further assistance for June rent.

Because of your generous support of the Emergency Response Fund, Brenda was thrilled and grateful for the rental assistance and advocacy. She no longer owes over $5,000 in back rent. Brenda hopes to start working again soon, stating she and her family should be okay after her employer is cleared to re-open its doors.