Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, November 26, 1993 TAG: 9311260024
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETSY BIESENBACH STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Wingo, 61, a sheet-metal worker, was laid off from Grumman Emergency Products when the plant closed in July 1992.
No one he's interviewed with has mentioned his age, "but they said they had all [the employees] they want."
He tried doing odd jobs, but that didn't work out either.
Now he has given up looking for work. Instead, he is waiting for his February birthday, when he will be eligible for Social Security and a small pension from Grumman. After that, he hopes to get a part-time job and start paying some of his bills.
In the meantime, he is trying to figure out how to live. His unemployment insurance ran out in June, and Wingo's sole income has been food stamps. He has enough to eat, he said, but there are utility payments to make, and a cat and a dog to feed.
To cover those bills, he took some of his possessions to yard sales and flea markets. But by November, there was nothing left to sell, and he needed help.
In some ways, Wingo is luckier than most. Although he has a mortgage against his house, in which he has lived since 1965, the noteholder isn't pressing him for payment. His three children can't help him financially, but he is close to them and his five grandchildren, whom he adores. He has no medical insurance, but aside from high blood pressure and gout, he is healthy.
Still, Wingo has problems he finds difficult to talk about. He has worked all his life and now describes himself as "financially embarrassed."
He has been forced to park his car because he can't afford insurance. Some of his creditors are pressuring him for money.
When Wingo couldn't pay off a loan for home repairs this summer, he went to Roanoke Area Ministries for help and was given $112 through a separate program for homeowners called "Second Mile."
"It's the first time in my life I've had to ask for any type of help," he said.
Although he's having a hard time now, "I'm hoping for the best," Wingo said. "I'm not going to get down. I'm going to keep plugging."
Wingo appreciates the help the Good Neighbors Fund has given him.
"When I get back on my feet, I want to help in return," he said.
Checks should be made payable to Good Neighbors Fund and mailed to Roanoke Times & World-News, P.O. Box 1951, Roanoke 24008.
Gifts cannot be earmarked for any particular individual or family. Gifts are tax-deductible.
by CNB