My family is kind of shocked by what has happened and I really want people to know about it. We have kind of kept it secret from people outside of close friends and family, which is weird but people just equate poverty with somekind of lack of morality and put fault and blame on you…
Category: Basic Income Stories
Category for posts submitted by Ontario Basic Income participants.
Anonymous Because of Stigma
Do people even realize just how MUCH people who are on ODSP go WITHOUT? Do you know what it does to your psyche to experience social isolation? To the critics, have you ever had to plan out how many meals you could afford to eat that week? Have you ever had to make up excuses…
A Worrisom Future
My name is Lloyd and I am 46 years old. Let me start with a little personal history. When I was 18 I was in a car crash and broke my back. I had a surgery to repair it which took me about 2 years to recover from. After that I went back to work…
Hope and Dignity Restored – Then Ripped Away
I am a soon to be 60 year old disabled single male. Being selected for the OBI project was uplifting, and for the first time in a very long time, I was feeling hopeful for the future and getting on top of my finances. I was able to go out finally a few times a…
My story
My name is Alyssa Sommerville, I am a 26 year old mother of 3. In 2013 I went to National Academy of Health and Business and obtained my Community Service Worker diploma. Since graduating I have been unsuccessful in obtaining employement of any type, especially trying to obtain employement in my field. In 2016 my…
Almost there
I was not aware of this program till a friend informed me of the information session that was held at Beasley Community Center. I gladly went to it and found out I was able to apply. I am a 63 year old Native senior. This program would have led me to my CPP at 65….
Can’t Get Ahead
Hi. I’m a 48 year old female who was on a combination of ODSP and CPP-Disability income for over a decade. For the past two years, have been recieving only CPP-Disability pension and working 10 hours a week. During a review of CPP-Disability eligibility it was noted I was struggling to maintain the hours I…
16 year old Daughter of a BI Recipient
After the divorce I was raised by a single mother, and though she did her best to hide our financial struggles, there are some things it is impossible to hide from your kids. Our lifestyle changed completely. Moving and starting roughly at a new school because we could no longer afford to stay in my…