Fina Badolato
Special to Middletown Times Herald-Record USA TODAY NETWORK
She was told that her job layoff was just temporary. When COVID restrictions eased, she would be called back to work. But four months later, this Sullivan County single mom’s job of 19 years was eliminated.
Undaunted, she immediately went job hunting and was hired not long afterward. The new job came with a significant pay cut, but at least she had work. And she continued to look for higher-paying employment, while keeping the new job. Fortunately, her landlord of five years was kind and allowed her to split rent payments when finances got tight. But that ended when her apartment building was sold. The new landlord would not accept partial payments.
The woman was confident that she’d soon land a higher-paying job, because of her many years of work experience and stable record. But until then, the rent needed to be paid, and she was at wits’ end.
Cue the Times Herald-Record’s People for People Fund, which helps people who live in Orange, Sullivan and Ulster counties in New York, and Pike County, Pa., get over a one-time hurdle and back on track to being self-sufficient with a modest grant. The Fund – formed in 1985 by the Record and the Junior League of Orange County – is supported through the generosity of local donors who care about their neighbors in crisis; folks much like you and me, who normally support themselves, but who encounter an unexpected financial setback.
‘A little help brought her current with everything,’ said Marsi Clark, People for People Fund executive director. ‘Even though she took a lower-paying job, she was still looking for something better. So many people were sitting at home, not even looking for work. But she went to work.’
With the holiday hubbub drawing to a close, what better time than now to do what we can to help our local folks in need? Please consider opening your heart and wallet to help the Record’s People for People Fund to provide much-needed, temporary financial assistance to our hard-working friends and neighbors who have hit a rough patch.
About the Fund
The Record’s People for People Fund is supported through voluntary donations from community and religious groups, businesses and mostly individuals, with dedicated volunteers working tirelessly with recipients each step of the way. To learn more about contributing, volunteering or applying for help from The Record’s People for People Fund, call 845-343-1663. Donations by check can be mailed to People for People Fund, c/o First Federal Savings of Middletown, P.O. Box 2023, Middletown, NY, 10940. Donations by credit card can be made via The Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan NY at cfosny.org, by searching for Record’s People for People Fund.
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