During the economic boom homeless shelters across the state were already filled with people down on their luck. According to this article from the San Bernardino Sun, it was mostly singles and couples who needed the help. Every single day of this economic recession, we are seeing more and moremothers and their children who have nowhere else to go.
From the San Bernardino Sun:
SAN BERNARDINO – For much of the past year, Norma Banuelos and her three daughters have divided their time between a home fraught with domestic violence in Redondo Beach and small motel rooms in Montebello.Early this week, Banuelos drove her Honda Accord, piled high with her belongings, to the Salvation Army on Fifth Street with the hope of getting a meal, a roof over her head and a new start in life.
“I am desperate and scared,” she said as she sat near the emergency homeless shelter, holding her sleeping 6-month-old daughter in her arms. “All I want is to get situated and put my kids in school.”
The Banuelos family is one of an increasing number of destitute families showing up in recent months at the Salvation Army and other facilities that provide meals and shelter to the homeless in San Bernardino County.
These are scary times for many of us. The reality is, most of us have extended family, or a rainy day fund to fall back on if things got really tough. Maybe we wouldn’t want to move in with the folks. Perhaps it would be a huge personal disappointment if we had to relocate our family out of the state. But it is still there as an extra security blanket.