To: The California State House, The California State Senate, and Governor Gavin Newsom
Senior Housing for Boomer Generation Women on extremely low fixed incomes
Women born in the late 1940s, early 1950s who are approaching age 62 and beyond, who were discriminated against before Title IX was passed which changed the sports programs in schools, who were discriminated against based on gender in hiring, pay, promotions, who were last hired, first fired, always underpaid, and as a result never earned very much income, who were gotten rid of and displaced by their husbands or widowed early or abandoned, or those who never married, are aging in California counties which have not built adequate Senior Housing to house these boomer women who are high risk for homelessness. The cost of housing in CA is too high so while the CA boomer women may have access to food stamps, SSI, Social Security, Medi-cal, most women in California will not have access to ALL these programs and affordable low cost housing is their greatest need of all.
So this petition is to bring awareness of our plight and the need for Senior Housing for CA childless single women to be built to address this critical shortage of affordable housing in California for this destitute and aging demographic who are so high risk for homelessness because almost nothing has been planned or built in decades. .
So this petition is to bring awareness of our plight and the need for Senior Housing for CA childless single women to be built to address this critical shortage of affordable housing in California for this destitute and aging demographic who are so high risk for homelessness because almost nothing has been planned or built in decades. .
Why is this important?
As a woman who lost her FT bookseller job with Borders Books after 8 years in June 2011, and who has not been able to find a replacement job with benefits, I have called my county housing authority to be told there are no open wait lists, and even if the wait lists opened, I am not allowed to apply until I am 62 and then the average wait is 6 to 7 years. The wait lists have been closed for at least two years, none are expected to open and so women of my generation are aging in CA with no way to even get on the wait lists for low income Senior Housing.
I cannot be the only boomer woman in CA that this is happening to. So Senior Housing for boomer women needs to be built in CA counties. Counties need to assess the extent of the need now and in the coming ten years and build Senior Housing to handle this influx of extremely low income boomer women who are high risk for homelessness. I never married, never had kids, am a college graduate, always worked since age 18, never was arrested, no addictions or illnesses, always able and willing to work, and always underpaid.
Now approaching 62, without health care, waiting for ACA ObamaCare expansion to start, I am working part-time and 100% of what I earn is going toward rent which is still considered below market rate for a one bedroom apt. in Marin County where I have lived almost half of my life. I do not want to move and why should I have to? Senior Housing for boomer women is desperately needed to be built in Marin, and Marin County cannot be the only County in CA where there is severe need of affordable housing for childless single women on extremely low incomes. I am not going to be able to collect Soc Sec until I am 70 because I will get 76% more by waiting from age 62 to age 70 and at 70, I will then, only get $1,300/ month because of a lifetime of being paid so little in the jobs I managed to find. I cannot be the only CA woman in this situation. Boomer women with extremely low incomes are increasing and we need housing to be planned and built quickly all over California. Foreclosed Homes could become shared homes for women like me. There's a critical need and county governments are not facing up to this critical shortage. Something must be done to bridge this gap.
I cannot be the only boomer woman in CA that this is happening to. So Senior Housing for boomer women needs to be built in CA counties. Counties need to assess the extent of the need now and in the coming ten years and build Senior Housing to handle this influx of extremely low income boomer women who are high risk for homelessness. I never married, never had kids, am a college graduate, always worked since age 18, never was arrested, no addictions or illnesses, always able and willing to work, and always underpaid.
Now approaching 62, without health care, waiting for ACA ObamaCare expansion to start, I am working part-time and 100% of what I earn is going toward rent which is still considered below market rate for a one bedroom apt. in Marin County where I have lived almost half of my life. I do not want to move and why should I have to? Senior Housing for boomer women is desperately needed to be built in Marin, and Marin County cannot be the only County in CA where there is severe need of affordable housing for childless single women on extremely low incomes. I am not going to be able to collect Soc Sec until I am 70 because I will get 76% more by waiting from age 62 to age 70 and at 70, I will then, only get $1,300/ month because of a lifetime of being paid so little in the jobs I managed to find. I cannot be the only CA woman in this situation. Boomer women with extremely low incomes are increasing and we need housing to be planned and built quickly all over California. Foreclosed Homes could become shared homes for women like me. There's a critical need and county governments are not facing up to this critical shortage. Something must be done to bridge this gap.