How Some Floridians Get By When Nearly Half Are Struggling To Make Ends Meet, Per A New Study

Photo byHarrison Keely, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

If you live in Florida and feel as if your money doesn't go nearly as far as it used to, you are not alone. A new study from the United Way found that 46% of households (over 4 million) in Florida are struggling to make ends meet. I also recently wrote about another study which suggested that a family of four needs to earn around $200,000 to live comfortably in Florida. Here's a look at how some struggling Floridians manage:

Food Bank Use From Someone Who Used to Volunteer At One: 72-year-old Floridian Barb Smith is a caregiver and has worked as a volunteer at the non-profit Feeding Tampa Bay Food Bank. She never imagined that she would one day be a client as well. However, as Florida faced some of the highest inflation rates in the nation, she began to struggle and had to use the same food bank where she worked. She explained:

“Gas prices went up. Everything went up. You just can’t save any money."

A Teacher Who Also Has A Part-Time Job As A Pressure Washer: According to a report from the National Education Association, Florida's teachers make approximately $53,098 per year. Only West Virginia teachers make less.

Ashley Modesto is a teacher at Florida's Edgewater High School and she works part-time with her husband doing pressure washing. Her weeks are long as a result, but Modesto says that the long hours are necessary for her family to stay afloat when her salary is in the $50,000 range. She told Fox 35:

"As long as there are opportunities to work, we will take them regardless of if that's going to be an 80-hour work week or if it will be a 60-hour work week."

A Commuter in Florida Has Had To Cut Back On Visiting His Wife Due To Rising Costs: Kevin Gallagher moved to Deland, Florida to work in the aerospace industry. His wife still lives in South Carolina in their original home. Because his rent recently doubled and the cost of gas is expensive, he no longer drives to see his wife as much as he used to, explaining:

"It's a good 50 gallons worth of gas for me to drive 1,000 miles round trip. And with the increased cost of housing here in Florida, I don't have the opportunity to spend as much on gas and things to get back."