COLUMBIA, S.C. — For years, the Salvation Army of the Midlands has assisted with things like food and shelter for families.
Now, as the price of everyday items continues to rise amid soaring inflation, they're seeing hundreds of new clients.
Lylita Davis is one of their case workers.
Her path to service started as a child, when the organization helped her family.
"We faced homelessness from the age of nine to about the age of 17," Davis said. "They came and got us and put us in a shelter."
As she works to help others, she says the need is greater now than before.
"A lot of them are just seeking advice. They don't know what to do, what direction to go into," Davis said, "and it's scary when you have a family that you have to provide for."
They're seeing 75 to 100 more people per month, a roughly 20 percent increase since April, according to the Salvation Army.
"We're talking about families that have a household of six or more," Davis said. "So, we do clothing vouchers, we do food bank, furniture vouchers, household items right now. Those are the things that we can offer at this moment. Once the funding comes through, we’ll help with rental assistance and utility assistance.”
Where they can't help, they refer with organizations around the Midlands working to help meet the need.
Among them is the United Way. Their 2-1-1 line connects callers to assistance around South Carolina.
"Takes you directly to a professionally staffed, information referral hotline," Mindy Popovich, President of United Way Sumter, Clarendon, and Lee Counties, said. "So, if there are programs that we don't offer locally they can help them access services in other areas."
For one Columbia woman, who preferred to remain anonymous, support from the Salvation Army was vital.
"They were able to put us up in a hotel for a couple of weeks and make sure we had all our necessary resources in finding us a permanent home," she said.
While everyone's circumstances are different, Davis said no one should have to go through them alone.
"Depending on the situation, I would say, as soon as you find out what situation you’re in, start finding resources," Davis said. "Reach out to somebody. Don’t just wait it out, because the earlier we find out the more we can try to do on our end.”
The Salvation Army of the Midlands is located at 3024 Farrow Road in Columbia. They can be reached at 803-765-0260. To learn more, visit salvationarmycarolinas.org/columbia/.