A Savings Habit Spurred by the Pandemic

Like many people, the pandemic upended Gena’s life in March 2020. A cosmetologist in Maryland, the shelter-in-place orders meant she couldn’t work—and with three young children at home, finding other employment was impossible. 

Gena had joined SaverLife in early 2020 and received a grant from the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund. The money was crucial to help her make ends meet until she began receiving unemployment benefits over the summer. 

Once Gena began receiving unemployment benefits, she used SaverLife to help her build an emergency savings fund and find other financial opportunities. 

“I find a lot of resources through SaverLife,” she said. “I found out about Steady and a military organization that helps pay our bills because my husband is a disabled veteran.” 

She used Steady to find small jobs to bring in money while she helped her children in remote school. 

Gena is an active member of SaverLife’s race challenges —thanks to a lot of hard work, she now has a three-month emergency fund. 

“My savings is three times what I had before joining SaverLife,” she said. “I didn’t see a need to save before the pandemic, but since then, my savings efforts have gone way up.” 

Gena’s favorite part about SaverLife is the communication. 

“I like getting messages about saving money or taking a survey,” she said. “The consistency helps me focus on getting more income and reaching my financial goals.” 

Now that she’s built up her family’s emergency savings, Gena is thinking long-term. She recently opened up a 529 savings account for her children’s education. 

“I know I need to set up my savings plan now in order to help my kids,” she said. 

Gena hopes to return to work in the fall when her older children are able to go to school in person, and her youngest is in daycare full time. 

Gena plans to continue using SaverLife to build her economic future. 

“I’ve earned money, been given money, and learned how to save money,” she said. “I’m so glad I found SaverLife.”