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St. John's program for women and children at risk amid COVID-19 health crisis

The program currently houses 200 formerly homeless women and children. It offers women work training, counseling and much more.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — While life, as we have known it, has come to a near halt, the bills are continuing to pour in, placing a hardship on many.

Within the span of just weeks workers, businesses, and non-profits have been forced to tighten their budgets during the unprecedented stay at home orders meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus by state and local governments.

Now, the largest residential program for women and children in Sacramento is facing a financial crisis. The St. John’s Program for Real Change will hemorrhage nearly $150,000 per month during the stay at home orders, according to the program’s Vice President Sasha Wirth.

“Because of those decreases and the impact of you know the mandate of social distancing and closing our social enterprises, we’re looking at about $150,000 per month deficit as a program," said Wirth. "And you know it’s something that’s not sustainable.”

The program currently houses 200 formerly homeless women and children. It offers women work training, counseling and much more.

Katrina Finley, 38, has been in the program for seven months. She became homeless after falling into alcoholism. Finley was at risk of losing her newborn daughter after she was arrested. She decided to do whatever she had to keep her daughter when she found St. John’s.

“My alcoholism started about 10 years ago and it progressed fast,” Finley said. “Within five years I had lost my home and house, family, my kids. It became a daily struggle.”

Finley says the program has changed her life and she’s not sure what she would do without it.

“St. Johns is the only women and children’s program here in Sacramento that I know of, that has such a success story,” Finley said. “So, if they shut the doors, these moms and children, we don’t know where we would go.”

St. John’s has a childcare center and two restaurants where the women work, all have had to close due to the stay at home order. The program has also been forced to cancel several fundraisers. All of these are funding sources and now they are hoping the community will come out to help.

St. John’s is asking for any help that folks could provide, from monetary donations to supplies for the women and children. If you’d like to help their program, you may visit their website by clicking here.

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