“I was in an interview and everything was going good and it looked like I was going to get the job. Then they asked to see my drivers license. I thought anything but that, I didn’t know what to do. They were looking at me and sweat started running down my face. My license is suspended and they told me I can’t operate machinery if I don’t have a license. That job paid $16 an hour and I needed it to feed my family. They couldn’t hire me.

Everything started Dec. 4, 2016, a year ago. I was driving a truck for a company and someone hit me. I was laid off a few weeks after the wreck. When it was time to go back they said they didn’t need me anymore. I hadn’t worked long enough to qualify for unemployment. That was a good job making $850 a week and I was making enough money to take care of my family and pay child support. The year was up and down after that. I am getting job offers but I can’t take them because I don’t have a license. I don’t have a license because I don’t have a job and have gotten behind on child support and that is $400 a month. Now I have to pay three months of payment plus a reinstatement fee to get my license back. That is $1500. It is state law, but I don’t understand how they can take someone’s license away and the ability to get to work and expect me to pay that. I have been doing odd jobs but they aren’t enough. I had a job with a temp service making $10 an hour and after child support came out, there wasn’t enough to take care of the rest of my family. I live with my fiance and between the two of us, we have five kids. We have been together for four years and are doing what we can.

Paying off the child support gets my license back and I will be cleared to drive again. I have been in this hole for months and it has started affecting us mentally. How do you get that kind of money at once when you can’t get a job? I was donating plasma and got sick doing that. Donating plasma paid about $45 and that went to gas and diapers.

I have a commercial drivers license and want to drive and work somewhere long term. We want to get married and have a house and live like everyone else. Not being able to provide for my family scares me. It hurts to tell my kids no for everything they ask for. Kids don’t understand that you don’t have the money. I was once able to do more for them and nobody knows about our situation. So many people are one paycheck or accident away from being homeless. That is a scary place to be.”

(Someone in the interview found out his story and reached out to her friends to help. They raised $2,000 to pay off his child support and a little extra for his kids for Christmas. His license will be reinstated and hopefully get a job again soon).