The following story is from Sophia Hernandez who describes her experience growing up in a low income single parent household:
Sophia is the youngest of four siblings in a family of five. Her mom has raised all four kids on her own. Her dad was deported when she was four years old. He had crossed over to the United States in hopes for a better life. They lost contact with him after he was deported back to Mexico, so he’s been out of her life for most of it. Losing him at such a young age has made having one parent almost normal to her. Sophia’s mother has acted as both parents. She could be loving and caring at times, but also strict and harsh at other times. Sophia’s home life is no less loving and structured than a two parent household can be. But she also recognizes how economically and emotionally challenging it has been on her family. It’s harder to support a family as big as hers with only one income, especially when that income is low. Fortunately, California offers many resources to families like Sophia’s. One of those is section 8. They pay for most of her family's rent and have made it possible for her to live in San Francisco, one of the most expensive cities in the world. Still, Sophia faces other challenges. An example of this is school. Alone, she has had to seek out help and resources in preparing for college. Those resources, like Minds Matter and Khan Academy, have aided her in her journey through high school. She wants to make sure others have access to the same resources. That’s why she is part of the Network team for SupplyHopeInfo. Sophia hopes to aid others in being college ready so they can break the cycle of poverty and succeed in life, just like her dad had hoped for himself and his family.