Employees Helping Employees fund was life changing

The Employees Helping Employees Emergency Fund provides grants of up to $1,000 to help employees hit by financial hardships. The grants help people pay emergency costs such as expensive repairs, housing, funeral expenses for a loved one, utility bills or medical payments.

For a grateful recipient, the Employee Helping Employee Emergency Fund was life-changing when she found herself struggling to pay basic living expenses after a difficult divorce. Here's her story:

I lost nearly everything in my divorce and fell into debt. I was working three jobs to get caught up but lost all three jobs in the same month. I found a new job and took on a roommate. But one day I came home to find my roommate had left, taking all my food, some of my things and leaving me to cover her unpaid rent and bills.

I now live alone, and despite working two full time jobs, it's been difficult to get caught up on my bills. I accrued credit card debt paying for basic living expenses and relied on food pantries to keep food on the table. I missed multiple car payments, my medical bills went to collections, and my electricity was going to be shut off because I was behind.

Confiding my troubles to a supervisor, she suggested I apply for assistance from the Employees Helping Employees Emergency Fund. The help I received from the fund may not seem big to some, but it was life changing for me.

Paying some of my bills and having no more threat of my electricity being disconnected was a huge weight lifted. I could finally get back on my feet. I am so grateful for the generosity of my coworkers who donated to the fund.

I want to say thank you for everything the Employees Helping Employees Emergency Fund did for me. I asked for help on a really dark day, not knowing what I was going to do. The grant I received helped me make it through that day.