Assisting Older Adults - Milos' story 
When Milos came to the United States from an Eastern European country, he believed that if he worked hard he could provide for his family and have enough money saved for his "golden years."
After he reached retirement, Milos and his wife, Sylvia, lived off of his Social Security income and supplemented it with odd jobs that he performed around his church. Unfortunately, he began having problems with his eyesight. Milos will some day be blind. He still works hard at church, but in a much more limited capacity.
The cost of the prescription medications that Milos and Sylvia needed were taking a large portion of the couple's monthly income. When the seasons changed, winter hit with a vengeance. Milos and Sylvia live in a rural area where heating oil is commmonplace. As oil prices rose to astronomical prices, Milos had to make a difficult decision: pay for medication or pay for heating oil to ward off the bitter chill of the northeast Ohio winter.
Strong in his faith, Milos prayed for an avenue of help. His aid came in the form of Catholic Charities' emergency assistance program. A compassionate social worker linked Milos with enough resources to pay for his heating oil. She also informed him that many pharmaceutical companies provide low-cost and free assistance to qualifying seniors and low-income adults. She helped Milos complete the necessary paperwork, and he sent the forms to the appropriate pharmaceutical company.
- submitted by Nancilynn Gatta, Catholic Charities Regional Agency
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Meet the Mitchell's
A couple with 2 biological children and 2 adopted special needs children called Catholic Charities regarding their housing situation. They had been in a verbal rent-to-own agreement where they paid the owners $600 per month with the intent of purchasing the house. One day a sheriff appeared at their door and advised them that they had to vacate the house because it had been sold at a sheriff's sale. The owners had defaulted on the mortgage payment, but the clients never knew because they were not listed on the title.
Catholic Charities housing counselor advocated to the judge for an extension so that the clients could have time to find another place to live. The judge agreed and the clients found another home. The counselor also worked with the family to help them qualify for a USDA loan if they agreed to enter into a plan to liquidate their debt. A credit counselor at Catholic Charities was then able to enroll them in a Debt Management Program, which will allow them to clear their collection accounts in less than 2 years.
The couple is expected to close on their home soon and will have a substantially lower payment than the $600 rent payment they started with.
