While working in a soup kitchen one day in March, Lisa Brownlie overheard members of five families say they had lost their jobs that day. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread and tighten its grip on the U.S., economists predict 14.4 million jobs will be lost in the coming months. That is a grim forecast, considering that in times of crisis, seven out of 10 American families are one paycheck away from homelessness.
“All of the families that we currently serve have lost their jobs,” says Lisa, who is Discipleship Director for Agape House, a ministry of Missions Door based in her hometown of Prescott, Arizona. “For now, we are paying their rent so they can remain in a safe place. The goal is that they can find other work so that they can continue to save money and become independent once again.”