Our Stories

Four years ago, when Tishonia Sims’ landlord sold the house she was renting and gave her less than 30 days to move, she feared she and her young daughter would become homeless.

“We all know that to relocate takes two important things – time and money – and I had neither,” said Tishonia, a Discrepancy Analyst in Dallas. During this rough patch, both she and her daughter were recovering from a severe bout of flu, for which they had both been hospitalized, and this had caused Tishonia to exhaust all her PTO already. “I had just paid my rent and my bills and I was also scheduled for surgery which had a down time of two weeks. I couldn’t even afford an application fee to secure a residence for me and my child.”

Tishonia confided in a colleague, sharing that she was struggling and concerned about finding a place to live, and that colleague advised her to talk to Human Resources about getting help from the Hope Fund. With guidance from HR, Tishonia gathered the paperwork she needed to verify her request. “The lady in HR walked me through it and I was amazed at the help I was able to get,” she said.

With help from the Hope Fund, Tishonia was able to find an apartment where she and her daughter could feel safe, secure, and at home. The assistance allowed Tishonia to get back on her feet, where she remains to this day.

“It’s just a great program,” she said. “The name – Hope Fund – is what it is; it gives you hope that all is not lost. If you need a helping hand, that is literally what it is. It definitely helped me. If it had not been for the Hope Fund, my 9-year-old daughter and I might have been living in a homeless shelter. You just never know what twists life can throw your way. Luckily for my daughter and me, the Hope Fund exists and we thank every contributor from the bottom of our heart.”