Life Stories
These are just a few of many of our client's life stories - they share the struggles that the client has had to face and how the people and services offered at Reach have helped them through their difficult situations.
Please have a read.
Paula and Rob's Story
"Paula and Rob were just about making it through the cost of living crisis but were plunged into debt when they had a family crisis. Then they were given an eviction notice..."
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Veronica's Story
"On the surface, Veronica generally seemed fine. But when REACH Community Outreach Advisor Tracey visited her at her home, she discovered Veronica’s living conditions were shocking. However..."
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Carl's Story
"Carl* is a very active full-leg amputee – he loves sport and does all sorts of fundraising challenges for charity. Earlier in 2022, he had to give up work because he had to take on the full-time care of his little son..."
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John's Story
"John has worked hard all his adult life. However, in 2018 he was diagnosed with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) which has left him struggling for breath. He was..."
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Sylvia's Story
"Sylvia* is an 80-year-old widow who lives alone in her own home. Very sadly she has just learned that she is terminally ill - she may not even get to see Christmas this year..."
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Maria's Story
"I first met Maria several years ago after she fled an abusive relationship. She and her small daughter Charlotte had been living in a refuge, and they then moved into social housing..."
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Mandy's Story
It should have been one of the happiest times of Mandy's life. She and her husband had not long moved to Haverhill and she had just had her first baby. Then quite suddenly, her husband left...
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Marjory's Story
On top of the grief of losing her husband, Marjory just couldn’t make ends meet...
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Joyce's Story
Joyce was a live-in carer to her father in his final years. When he passed away, she could no longer afford the rent on their home, but nor could she find a smaller place to live...
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Jerry's Story
Jerry, one of our clients, longed to get a job. He’s young and enthusiastic – but as he applied for dozens of roles and got rejection after rejection, he started to feel like he was a failure, that he’d never get anywhere. He felt like he was on the scrap heap at only twenty-two...
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Richard's Story
Always self-sufficient and hardworking, manual laborer Richard had never needed to ask for help. But redundancy and lockdown pulled the rug from underneath him...
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Jay's Story
Jay was furloughed at the start of the pandemic – but it was when he returned to work that his financial problems really started...
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