More Than a Paycheck: What It Takes to Get Ahead

Two days before my brother’s 10th birthday, my family was on the brink of bankruptcy. My parents’ small business hadn’t hit its growth projections, leaving my parents with a level of business and personal debt they couldn’t afford. While they knew they would lose the business, my mom was unwilling to lose the house along with it. So, she told my dad to call our creditors to offer them pennies on the dollar to keep us solvent. For my brother’s 10th birthday, they kept our family in our home.

For the next 11 years, my dad was in and out of employment. During that time, the goal was simply to remain financially stable. It took decades to feel truly financially secure. And while how much money they made mattered, it wasn’t everything. My parents’ ability to hold on depended on the home they were trying to protect, the debt they were able to renegotiate, and the systems they could access along the way. Their individual choices mattered, but those choices were shaped by larger forces: the labor market, lending practices, and the opportunities available to build assets over time.

While my family was fortunate to find a way through, too many families across our region face the same challenges without enough room to recover. In Chicago, 20% of residents owe more than they own – a figure that rises to nearly 50% among Black and Latine households. Behind those statistics are deeply human concerns: Can I cover rent and groceries? Fix the car? Pay a medical bill? Save for a home or for retirement? Start again after a setback?

These questions may be experienced individually, but they are shared by families across our region. When so many families are facing these challenges, we have to ask a bigger question: Is what we’re doing enough?

Over the last four years, The Chicago Community Trust’s Income & Assets portfolio has helped thousands of Chicagoans move into good jobs. We are proud of that work, and it has reinforced a central lesson: a good job can change a life, but lasting economic mobility requires more than a paycheck.

That is why the next chapter of the Income & Assets strategy will take a more holistic approach. We will continue helping people access economically mobile jobs while also pursuing strategies that help families build and protect assets, reduce harmful debt, and navigate the systems that shape their financial lives. And because families don’t face these challenges in isolation, we’ll also place a greater emphasis on changing the systems and practices that can make it harder for people to get ahead. While my parents weathered several financial storms, my hope is to help create a future where financial stability is within easier reach for individuals and families across Cook County. Through this strategy, we can help more families across the Chicago region reach stability, recover from setbacks, and build toward the future without needing extraordinary luck or decades to get there.