Poverty in America

October 26, 2015

Good morning friends of Care and Share!

We found a great article in the Washington Post, The remarkably high odds you’ll be poor at some point in your life, that we would like to share.

The article features the findings of Mark Rank, a sociologist at Washington University. Rank and his colleagues have been studying the economic fortunes of several thousand families in the longest running longitudinal survey in America. The study covers a 43 year time period: 1968-1911.

Although we highly encourage you to take a look at the entire article, here are some key findings:

By the time they’re 60 years old, nearly four in five people experience some kind of economic hardship. This means that by age 60, nearly 80% of us will have gone through a financially tough time

Rank also found a surprising amount of economic mobility in the top 20%, and even the top 1%, but just as the case for those living in poverty, those in the upper percentages may not stay there for very long.

So what does all of this mean? Rank has found that “A lot of people tend to experience a year or two of economic insecurity, then get back on their feet, then maybe experience another year down the road,”

This is why safety-net organizations, like Care and Share, are so important to the health and vitality of our economy.

If more people understood that the poor could be any one of us at any time in our lives, Rank surmises that there would be greater support for programs that help people living in poverty get back on their feet.

Again, if you have a few minutes, please check out the article.

Thank you for reading and have a great day!

Service Area Assessment – We want to hear from you!

October 11, 2024

In order to better understand food insecurity in Southern Colorado, Care and Share is conducting a Service Area Assessment that seeks to consolidate information from