Anna and her family were already dealing with the uncertainty of a major illness and subsequent job loss when the next blow came — potential eviction.

As a result of her severe circumstances, Anna had fallen behind in rent and soon found herself in court.

That’s where she first connected with Legal Services of South Central Michigan, a United Way nonprofit partner organization that offers free legal advice and representation in civil cases to low-income families and senior citizens.

A Legal Services attorney, Alisa Parker, quickly helped Anna overcome her first housing hurdle. Rather than evict on the termination eviction that day, Anna’s landlord agreed to allow her time to pay off her outstanding balance while staying in her home.

“That was phenomenal; it doesn’t happen very often,” said Pam George, a paralegal with LSSCM who picked up Anna’s case after that first success. “Then, there was hope.”

The Work Begins

After the court agreement, Pam walked Anna through every step in applying for agency assistance, advised her on public benefit issues, and worked with local churches willing to assist Anna through this process.

Anna drew from her own resources as well. When she came up against the deadline and was still short, Legal Services negotiated on her behalf to extend the deadline.

Other roadblocks emerged, to be sure, but between the assistance provided by LSSCM and Anna’s own hard work, she was able to pay the eviction judgment in full.

“This one was challenging, but I have to say we are blessed to be able to help a lot of people who come through here who want to pay and stay,” said Pam, who has been with Legal Services for more than 13 years. “There are wonderful people at the agencies and churches with caring hearts.”

Anna’s family is once again on solid ground, and she continues to successfully maintain housing payments.

“There were so many blessings throughout this whole situation, it was beautiful,” Pam said.

Join Us

Legal Services and other local agencies are helping people in our communities every day to get back on their feet and move toward economic stability. United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region is able to support this important work because of you.

Please join us, and help us continue to change the story for people like Anna.

For more information on Legal Services of South Central Michigan, visit their website at http://www.lsscm.org.

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