The Best of Intentions - Mia's Story
/The CalFresh Challenge asks you to live on a food budget of $4.27 a day, the average allotment for someone on CalFresh in San Diego County. As most people have seen this week, it's more difficult than expected.
After signing up for the CalFresh Challenge, Mia was confident she could make it on $4.27 a day. She registered online. She was ready.
Then, one thing came up. Then another.
Mia told us about what held her back from eating on a CalFresh budget each day this week:
- Monday - I was in meetings all day at coffee shops.
- Tuesday - I had to get up at 4:30 a.m. and the extra long day made this difficult - especially without coffee.
- Wednesday - Overslept and didn't have time to go to the grocery store and plan out my meals.
- Thursday - Bike commuting a long distance for work made me super hungry.
- Friday - Laziness.
Mia's story reminds us how difficult it is for people who don't have a choice. Thousands of people in San Diego rely on CalFresh to put food on the table month after month - even when the kids get sick, or when the car breaks down, or when the work day is longer than usual.
Want to learn about what's made the week feel impossible for CalFresh Challenge participants? For one participant, it was giving up a morning latte. For another, it was grocery shopping on crutches after a knee injury. Tell us your story.
