“I never felt alone when I was at Twin Oaks, even during the darkest times.” Amy’s college career at UW-Whitewater skidded to a halt once the pandemic hit. As a non-traditional student she couldn’t go to class during the lockdown and lost her student housing. She lived in a tent for about two months in [...]
We are pleased to share a recent success story from Twin Oaks Shelter for the Homeless. Neil, Tara, and Neil’s son, Adam, became homeless when family members kicked them out. They had been staying in their vehicle and then in a motel with a motel voucher before coming to Twin Oaks. Neil had a part [...]
Carlos, a father of three, was an inmate in the Rock County Jail's RECAP program when Erick Williams gave a presentation on Community Action's Fatherhood Initiative. Carlos promised Erick, the program manager, that he would enroll in the Fatherhood Initiative upon his release. From the first day Carlos walked into group, he was serious about [...]
Linda’s husband John was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Their children were grown but John would no longer be able to work. Linda’s disability check was not enough to pay for everything. When bills piled up they turned to AWARE in Evansville for help. John’s condition continued to decline and he passed away six months later. Linda [...]
Starting a new school year can be nerve-racking for any kid, but it’s especially so when that big first day rolls around and finds you living in a homeless shelter. That’s the situation facing the nine school-aged children currently living at Twin Oaks, but thanks to one of their fellow residents, they can at least [...]
Laura escaped domestic violence in Texas, traveling north to live with a sibling in Madison. When that arrangement didn’t work out, she put her name in a lottery for a bed in a women’s shelter, but felt overwhelmed and didn’t stay. At one point, she was living in a storage shed with her friend and [...]
After owning two unreliable vehicles that broke down constantly, Darnell was paying to carpool and walking to and from work for more than two years. Prior to the Work-n-Wheels vehicle loan approval, Darnell, his wife Kissa, and their eight year old daughter would walk in the unpredictable Wisconsin weather get groceries, go to the doctor and [...]
Isaac began his participation in Community Action's Workforce Investment Act (WIA) program in 2011 in a Tourism apprenticeship program which provided him the skills to get a regular seasonal job in tourism. WIA also helped prepare him for college by providing him with college preparation classes. Upon graduation from Dodgeville High School in 2012, Isaac enrolled [...]
We recently scheduled an energy audit for an elderly couple living in a mobile home on a fixed income. The list of things we can fix in a mobile home has been dramatically decreased, but light bulbs are something we can always do. When our staff members explained this to the elderly woman over the [...]
Rakeem successfully completed the Community Action WIA In-School Youth Program in November of 2013. Rakeem received his high school diploma and went on to find gainful employment working for the School District of Janesville. In September 2015, Rakeem found himself unemployed and in need of help. Rakeem reached out to Community Action’s WIOA Out-of-School Youth program [...]