ALICE Conversations: Moses’ Story
(Sponsored) Let's reshape the conversation around our ALICE population. How can we collectively help our friends and neighbors get ahead?
Image courtesy of Aloha United Way.
This month Moses and his two daughters will move into their brand-new home thanks to Honolulu Habitat for Humanity. It’s been a long road for Moses who is a single father, a Waimanalo native, and a U.S. Army National Guard veteran.
When he first applied for Habitat’s Home Ownership program, shaky credit and an unstable financial situation prevented him from being accepted. Determined, Moses worked to improve his financial health, attended Habitat’s financial literacy classes, and rebuilt his credit.
Three years ago, he finally heard the words he had been waiting so long to hear: Welcome to the Habitat Family. “It was a turning point in my life,” he recalls. To date, he has contributed more than 300 Sweat Equity hours building the homes of his Habitat neighbors. Now he and his family have a home they finally get to call their own.
Honolulu Habitat for Humanity is one of many partner agencies that participate in Aloha United Way’s ALICE Initiative. These agencies support upward financial mobility for lower-income families and individuals in Hawai‘i. ALICE is an acronym for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed and it’s a new way to define and understand the households that earn above the Federal Poverty Level, but not enough to afford a bare-bones household budget.
For far too many in Hawai‘i, the cost of living outpaces what they earn, making it hard to get ahead. These ALICE households struggle to manage even their most basic needs: housing, food, transportation, childcare, health care, and technology.
This month is also the month Aloha United Way launches a virtual summer conversation series to shine a light on Hawai‘i’s ALICE population and provide a venue for community conversation about making a greater impact together through collective impact. These virtual events will take place on June 24, July 29, and August 26 and all are invited to join.
Let’s work together to create equitable communities where every family and individual is empowered, thriving, and able to weather acute and chronic hardships.
Flyer courtesy of Aloha United Way.
