For most, poverty is a fluid
condition. A recent Census Bureau study showed that 42 percent of those in
poverty in the U.S. in 2004 (12 million at the time) were not in poverty in
2006.
At Step Up, we’ve learned that
touching one, two, 25 families in poverty is critical. Every touch counts, from
finding assistance when a mortgage can’t be paid to teaching a family how to
get out of debt. These and hundreds of other daily interventions throughout our
community change individual lives, albeit incrementally.
But even the most successful
small-scale programs can’t end poverty. It’s not until those programs with the
strongest outcomes can expand to serve much greater numbers, and touch
thousands of lives at myriad points, that we have a chance.
