By: Melanie Schafer

Poverty in Isabella County

What is Poverty? Poverty

The state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions.

State of being poor Lacking something

Medical Poverty Debility due to malnutrition

Isabella CountIes Poverty rate

31.4%

Beverly Cobb “A lot of charities here [Mt. Pleasant] are horrible

to the people that need them. I wanted to crawl under a table and disappear because of how I was treated at the Salvation Army.”

“I’ve been living under the poverty line for a lot of my life. From my birth in Louisiana to right now,” Cobb said. “My worst living situation was when I had to live in my car. I did it for about five years in Mt. Pleasant with my two daughters. We ate meals at the soup kitchen, got clothes from places like the Salvation Army and washed up in the Chip River.”

“Everything happens for a reason I believe. One of my daughters is in college now and she is studying to be a social worker. I know she will be the best one because she knows what it feels like to be homeless and hungry”.

What Affects Poverty?

CMU

Highest Poverty rate of

any Michigan county for

students

Population=21,332 of 70,617Loans

Tuition

Housing

Debt

Income

Decreasing

Lower than

Michigan’s average

1. What poverty means2. Isabella County’s poverty rate3. Factors that affect the poverty rate

7 People

Work Cited Clark, Nathan. "High Poverty Rates for Mount Pleasant, Isabella County Skewed by Student

Population." Central Michigan Life. N.p., 16 Sept. 2013. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. <http://www.cm-life.com/2013/09/16/high-poverty-rates-for-mount-pleasant-isabella- county-skewed-by-student-population/>.

Smith, Melissa K. "Ties That Bind: Poverty and Michigan's Economic Recovery." Michigan League for Human Services. N.p., Dec. 2011. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. <http://www.milhs.org/wp-

content/uploads/2010/07/2011PovertyReport.pdf>.

Patman, Logan. Homelessness in Isabella County. Wix site, n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. <http://patmo1ld.wix.com/loganthejournalist#!homelessness-in-isabella-

county- /c1mc4>. Lloyd, Eric. "Isabella County Holds Highest Poverty Percentage in State." 9&10 News. N.p., 8 Jan.

2014. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. <http://www.9and10news.com/story/24399835/isabella-county-holds-highest-poverty-percentage-in-state>.

“poverty." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2011.Web. 19 March 2011.