Israel and Maddison’s Story

The path to citizenship can be long and tedious requiring many years of effort: holding a job, securing numerous character references, submitting forms, paying fees and visiting immigration offices here and abroad. And when all this is interrupted by COVID-19, it can suddenly put a family on the brink of financial ruin.

Israel has lived in the United States for 20 years, the last 15 of which have been in Fort Wayne. During this time, he has held a steady full-time job, married Maddison, an American citizen, and become the father of two. Like so many in the restaurant business, he was laid off when COVID-19 hit. Tragically, though, he was not eligible for unemployment because he is still working on gaining permanent residency.

The rules of the stimulus also prevented Israel and Maddison from qualifying for the stimulus. Because Maddison is on maternity leave and Israel is the main bread winner, no income meant that essentials like their mortgage and utilities would go unpaid. Threatened with losing their home, our Resource and Referral program provided the family with the necessary assistance to avoid defaulting on their loan.

When the pandemic struck, Catholic Charities spent most of the first couple months securing grants and donations to assist the many individuals, families and small business owners that needed assistance. With these relief funds in-house, Israel and Maddison were able to stay afloat because we could pay their mortgage and utilities.

“Many thanks to everyone who made this [assistance] possible,” say Israel and Maddison. “It’s been a life saver.”