KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Families in the Kansas City area struggling with housing instability will continue to receive support through federally funded programs.
United Way of Greater Kansas City received $3.35 million from the Missouri Department of Economic Development through its community revitalization program, which is funded by federal dollars in the American Rescue Plan.
“We’re predicting that it will serve just over 600 households," said Jim MacDonald, United Way's vice president of community impact. "So we’ll be either preventing the loss of housing for those families or, if they are already unhoused, helping them get set up in new housing by covering the cost of deposits and moving expenses and the first month’s rent."
In the last three years, United Way’s Eviction Prevention Program has helped more than 5,000 people and has halted more than 2,500 evictions in the area.
MacDonald says the COVID-19 recession has exacerbated the already-existing eviction crisis.
“That moratorium has been lifted and eviction filings have returned to pre-pandemic levels, and are continuing to rise,” MacDonald said. “In Jackson County alone, there are more than 9,000 evictions filed against households each year.”
The program was set to expire this year due to a lack of funds, but with the new grant, it will continue to serve households in Jackson, Clay and Platte counties.
Christopher Reed received rent assistance through The Corporation for Supportive Housing, an agency that works with United Way, and says one emergency can leave hardworking people homeless.
“When financial hardship sets in, there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. You’re doing all you can ... it’s hard,” Reed said.
Based on lived experience, Reed says he understands what it's like to carry the weight of supporting the livelihood of one's family. He says in the blink of an eye, he found himself responsible for feeding a family of five on one income.
“I won’t call it pressure, it’s a duty. But even in duty, sometimes you can’t get things done that you’d like to get done because of unexpected circumstances," Reed said. "And as I said, the pandemic is something no one saw coming. No one had a pandemic fund."
Reed says his family moved into his current house four years ago. While it is a rental for now, he would like to eventually buy the home.
He hopes sharing his story of finding help and regaining financial control will encourage others to keep their eyes on their dreams.
“The most important part of it is that they never made me feel embarrassed. It was a sense of empathy and understanding,” Reed said.
