Meet Adriana.
She is a college-educated New Yorker who is the primary caregiver to her 83-year-old mother. And she is a client of her local food pantry.
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Three years ago, the company Adriana worked for moved to Connecticut, but she and her mother stayed put. Since then, Adriana has found herself jumping from odd job to odd job, barely making ends meet. The suffering economy and seemingly impossible job market have not made her situation any easier.
Seeing herself as educated and employable, Adriana felt a great deal of inner turmoil as she realized she was going to have to turn to the food pantry in order to have enough to eat.
“I want to go back to my profession because I went to college for three and a half years, and I worked very hard,” she said. “I don’t think it’s fair that I have to come through the food line if I’m willing to work.”
Sometimes it feels impossible to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We’ve all been there. And eventually, Adriana realized that this rough patch didn’t have to define her.
“You have to do what you have to do. And that is why I’m here,” Adriana said.