GREEN BAY (WGBA) -- It has been a difficult year for Alma Lopez. In February, her family suffered a devastating loss, when a young boy close to the family died. Two weeks later, her business shut down because it was non-essential. That led to a long year of grief and uncertainty.
"I was depressed I gained weight," she said. "It was difficult feeling like a burden. It was a difficult and humbling process."
Since her business as an outdoor guide shutdown, her income stopped coming in - making it hard to pay for rent. She is also raising three children. All of them are learning virtually and one has special needs.
"It came to a point where I realized I needed to find help," she said. "My landlord was very patient. He recommended a few places to help with payment."
She located Newcap, a non-profit group dedicated to helping those with housing issues. They recommended she apply for the Wisconsin Rental Assistance Program. Through that, she was able to get enough money to pay for part of the bills she had stacking up.
"It helped a lot," she said. "Thanks to that I am now able to get somewhat back on track."
However, Lopez is not the only one in need of help. There could be soon more who need assistance. According to Newcap, they think more evictions happen in the next few months.
"Once the CDC moratorium is done more will happen," said Debbie Bushman with Newcap. "You will see more court cases and more evictions through that."
She reccomends people contact Newcap is there are any issues, or if you are concerned about paying rent. Lopez reccomends people not wait.
"If it is a matter of having a roof over your head or food on the table do it," Lopez said. "It helped me, it can help others. I know there is a stigma about it, but these are not normal times."
If you need to contact Newcap, visit their website www.newcap.org. Or you can call 1-800-242-7334.
