JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — This year has been hard for a lot of reasons, but some people are finding themselves in a financial situation they’ve never experienced. They are living in poverty.
For Mohini Carter and her four children, life changed drastically in 2020.
"It has been a rough year," Carter said.
This Navy veteran and college graduate lost her job at a restaurant when COVID-19 shut businesses down. Then she went through a divorce.
Carter said, "I was thinking, 'Oh my God, I’m not working. Oh my goodness, I have four kids at home. What am I going to do?'"
She applied to more than 80 jobs. A few places called back but Carter said there was more she had to take into consideration.
"What was I going to do with my kids?" she said. "The oldest is 8 years old."
Eventually, unemployment kicked in but it was not enough to make ends meet.
Carter had never been poor.
"I was going from a 4-bedroom house to a little apartment, so that was rough," she said. "I was always comfortable. I lived a comfortable life."
Cater had to ask her family for money. A neighbor helped with groceries. Now, she gets food from Lutheran Social Services. She said she had never had to reach out for help or for food until this year.
"It was hard," Carter said, "because I felt like a failure."
Lutheran Social Services Director Bill Brim told First Coast News many people are newly poor.
"They’re trying to keep their lives as normal as they can for their kids," he said.
Brim said the number of people who have asked for help from Lutheran Social Services has climbed 136 percent in 2020 because of COVID-19’s impact.
Cars backed up for a mile on Phillips Highway Friday. Inside those cars were people in line for a food giveaway. More than 1,300 people got food that day.
Brim said, "They’re crying and saying I never thought I’d be in this position."
Carter was able to get a part-time job at Lutheran Social Services. The money pays the bills, but she still gets food from the food pantry there.
"If they weren’t helping me, I would have to pull from something else. It’s not easy," she said. "What do you do? Pay for food or pay for rent? It’s hard."
Hard when you know those little faces are relying on you.