In The News

Dan Green fell in love during his homecoming’s last dance, “Stairway to Heaven.”

This was Northeastern High School in 2002, and Dan, a sophomore, was sporting his finest threads, a silky AC/DC shirt. In his arms was a junior, Krista Grothe.

He thought, “I’m gonna marry this girl someday.”

He did, but before that day came, they would have a baby and a boatload of challenges. Their burdens would put them in the category of poverty, dictating how they lived and where they lived.

But they survived. They found hope in the kindness of strangers, and three children later, they live and breathe the theory that love endures.

The state Department of Health announced Monday, Sept. 9, that instead of distributing checks from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), participants will now receive an EBT card that can be swiped just like a debit or credit card.

The change will be positive for a number of reasons, said Carly Hess, clinic manager and WIC outreach coordinator for the York County Community Progress Council.

“Unfortunately, sometimes there’s a stigma that goes along with checks,” she said.

WIC checks used to be distributed to participants once every three months, Hess said, and each check was printed with a list of the approved items that could be purchased with that check, such as milk, peanut butter, fruits, vegetables or cereal.

Community Progress Council, York County’s community action agency, received the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency’s “Best Agency Award” during a Nov. 13 event in Harrisburg.

The Community Progress Council (CPC) was one of four out of 72 agencies across the state to be honored, according to a news release.

The CPC was recognized for its work with York County residents regarding home-ownership, home foreclosure, rental assistance and personal finance.

Its housing program provides one-on-one counseling, as well as educational workshops for residents.

Access to health care, jobs, housing, transportation and child care was just beyond reach. If they were attainable, they were costly necessities that made the difference as to whether there would be dinner on the table or lights on at night.

They scrambled to find jobs and to feed their families, while handling as best they could the mishaps and misfortunes that easily derail plans, leading to hunger or homelessness or both. 

“There was a lot of uncertainty,” said Mike Buckingham.

Ever have your purse stolen? Accidentally cut your hand with a kitchen knife? A kid get sick?

For a middle class family, that might be an inconvenience.

For a family living below the poverty line, this might be a tipping point toward disaster.

That’s important to understand if you’re an employer or business leader in York County, the Community Progress Council thinks.

A poverty simulation at York College strives to help others understand some of the challenges of poverty.