Through our partnership with the Hunger Coalition, St. Luke's Center for Community Health, the City of Ketchum, Blaine County and many many volunteers, we were able to keep 158 individuals (59 of them children) safe this winter. However this is a challenge that is present everyday for many still, and more that live in threat of losing their housing. According to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, for every 100 households with extremely low incomes in Idaho, there are just 38 affordable and available rental homes or apartments. 68% of those households are in the labor force or are seniors. BCCF not only serves these extremely low income households, but all the way up to households earning above the average median income. As the study states: "When lower- to middle-income families have to put more than a third of their income toward housing, it takes away from other areas in their budget." Of the households BCCF served this year alone, 73% of their income is going to pay rent. When households are regularly challenged to pay their rent you can just imagine what else can't be addressed and how close to the edge of being homeless families are. We are grateful for the community that takes the time to understand and support the work to offset these troublesome facts.
