When asked about the GRIT program, Geno Rosario says, “It’s changed my house for the better. And I’ve felt so much less month-to-month stress since this program started. It feels like I have some room to breathe.” Geno adds that the $500 each month is spread between tutoring for his 11-year-old, food for the family, and their first family outing in over a decade.
Geno is a single father in Tacoma raising three boys. He works as a technology consultant for a small company and sustains his household paycheck to paycheck, something that has led to enduring stress and pinching of pennies.
As a Tacoma native, Geno loves the city but says it has felt like an uphill financial battle that he was left to fight alone. He, like so many others, makes too much income to receive support from the public benefits system, but not enough to not need the support. With one kid needing diabetes medication and another needing tutoring, Geno was beginning his search for a second job when he got accepted into the GRIT program. Because of the GRIT dollars, Geno has not needed a second job, and he hopes to save as much of the money as possible in order to sustain himself and his family on a single income.
Quotes from Geno:
“So far, I’ve been able to use GRIT payments for: paying Sylvan Learning Center monthly to get my sons grades in school up due to his learning struggles (he went from failing 4 classes to passing each one after twice-weekly tutoring sessions), taking my kids out to the skating rink for the first time (we fell all over the place), being able to get better foods to cook at home, like chicken salads, better quality meat to cut up for foods, and such.
GRIT has helped me in ways I didn’t expect, and those payments helped me be able to afford the expensive tutoring that my 11 year old really needed. It’s changed my house for the better. And I’ve felt so much less month-to-month stress since this program started. It feels like I have some room to breathe. “
“It was great to not have to worry about that for once,” Rosario said. “It’s nice to not have to panic, and know there is going to be enough.” -Crosscut story
“With the GRIT payment, I can relax, stop and breathe. And not freak out,” Rosario said. “To have enough left over to breathe, to not have to count the days, it feels like there is a load off my shoulders.” - Crosscut story