ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Bettie Lindsey was barely able to hold back tears as she sat by the pool of the Extended Stay facility she and her family have called home for the past several months.
Lindsey, who admitted she was in the process of turning her life around, thought she had finally “made it” when she found an apartment for her three kids and granddaughter.
The Pulse survivor said the building sold – twice – and paperwork issues with the new landlord resulted in her being evicted.
The organization who placed her found her the room at the Extended Stay, promising to find her a new apartment and offering to help with the cost in the meantime.
Lindsey said she got a week’s notice in February that the assistance – and assistance for many other families at the Extended Stay – would be ending.
“We were going to be responsible for everything,” Lindsey said. “Every time when [the money] comes in, it’s right back out.”
Lindsey was the beneficiary of a nonprofit group’s Bridge Housing funds. The funding provided by the State of Florida was meant to help keep families off the streets by providing temporary assistance until they found more solid ground to stand on.
The Homeless Services Network, which was not involved in Lindsey’s case, confirmed the program was meant to be temporary and funding dried up in February, leaving that organization with 11 families they had to help with about three months’ notice.
“There is a tremendous need for what’s called bridge housing — a safe place to stay while working toward a stable long-term solution,” an HSN spokeswoman wrote. “We’re trying to find another source of funding to continue the program.”
Lindsey said her full-time job and her daughter’s full-time job brought in some money, but not enough to afford Orlando’s high rental prices for a family of five. Her eviction and past convictions also worked against her.
As she sat by the pool, she said her rent was due in an hour – and for the first time, she didn’t have the money.
“I don’t know how one person is supposed to make it without going out doing something wrong,” she said. “The stories I’ve been hearing these women say, and I’ve been watching these women do, I don’t want to be pushed to that.”
When asked why she wanted her story to be told, she said she wanted Floridians – and especially politicians – to remember that families like her were struggling to survive.
“We’re still taxpayers, whether we’re homeless or not, we still go to work, we still pay bills, but it’s getting overwhelming, and we need people to hear us,” she said.
Lindsey’s fortunes improved – slightly – a few minutes after her interview ended, and after she described her emotions as feeling like God was no longer listening to her.
“[Homeless Services Network] just paid for today and a week here,” she texted, along with a few other details that signified a renewed sense of hope. “Thank you God.”
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