Hope for a better future begins with a meal

My husband Josh and I have three children. John is 7, Gavin is 2 and Marietta is 1. When we first got married, our lives were pretty stable. We had a place to live and both of us worked full time. We could pay the bills and we could buy our children the things they needed. But then I lost my job and things went downhill from there.

Josh lost his job the year after I did. We had just moved into a new home so the loss was especially tough. We did everything we could to find other work but apparently it just was not enough. Today, we are down to our last dime. After the bills are paid, there is no money left. In fact, there is no money to pay all the bills. We constantly have to make tough choices like choosing between buying diapers and paying a utility bill. If it was not for the Food Bank, we would definitely have to choose between paying for utilities and buying food.

We receive help from the Food Bank each week. That enables me to make quick, easy meals for all my children. Josh and I may have to skip meals, but we make sure our children never have to. Without help from the Food Bank though, I really do not know how we would feed them.

We never thought our lives would turn out like this—no one does. But when we did find ourselves in this situation we were so thankful the Food Bank was there to help. We will not always struggle like this; I have hopes for a better future. In fact, Josh starts a new job this week and I am planning on going back to school. We will work hard to get on our feet so we can give our children a better life. I want them to have the world and someday, the ability to give back.