“You make $15 ten years ago, you were making really really good money. You make $15 an hour now, and you’re scraping.” Ask Sue about her job history and she’ll tell you she has worked almost every job in the…
“You make $15 ten years ago, you were making really really good money. You make $15 an hour now, and you’re scraping.” Ask Sue about her job history and she’ll tell you she has worked almost every job in the…
“I grew up with farmers and mechanics, and those types of jobs were the middle class. And it just doesn’t seem that way anymore.” Sandra grew up in a time when many hard working families were able to join the middle…
“I’ve been promised a dream that doesn’t exist anymore. The rich are getting richer; the middle class are getting poorer… I think that’s really sad for our country. I’m waiting for us to step up and do something right and…
“I just knew I didn’t want to live paycheck-to-paycheck like my parents have. I wanted better for myself…I threw myself into school because I saw what I could be like if I didn’t.” Katie grew up with a comfortable middle…
“I don’t expect to retire—that’s the thing—I expect to keep on working. I don’t have much saved….I’m worried about it.” Chris, a baby boomer in his 60s, has his roots in Pullman, WA. After leaving Kansas during the dust bowl…
“I pay close to three hundred dollars a month just for medical, that’s not even dental and eye [care]. That’s a big chunk of money. In my son’s situation, with [his] reoccurring illnesses, there’s always labs and tests. I had to take a…
“You feel like you want to become an adult, live on your own, leave your parents, go to work, go to school, but financially, that’s really not possible.” Jessie, a young man in his early 30s, has lived in Washington…
“I honestly don’t know how I’ll make it, but I can see the long-term goal so it just keeps me working harder.” Tara is a preschool teacher who is also in school, working toward her Bachelor’s degree. The high cost…
“When you have kids at home that look up to you, you have to try every day. It can be a struggle.” As the sole breadwinner for her family of four young children, Ashley can’t afford not to work. She’s…
