WREX.com – Rockford’s News LeaderBudget stalemate has area families and services scrambling

Budget stalemate has area families and services scrambling

By Marissa Alter

ROCKFORD (WREX) - Without a state budget, social service agencies scramble to figure out their future.

Circles of Learning's Executive Director went to bed last night, praying for a compromise in Springfield. When she woke up, no such luck.

"I feel so bad for the families we serve, the foster families, the parents who are working who don't know starting today if they'll have service. And I was so disappointed they couldn't come to a budget resolution so that services could continue," says Executive Director Diane Stout.

The center's board and financial committee met today to figure out what's next. They'll go 30 days by 30 days.

"We didn't want to have a knee-jerk reaction and ask people to leave because if the budget did get resolved, we didn't want them to have to lose their jobs and then search for other jobs."

Angie Lowery's game plan isn't quite as clear. She and her husband have a two-year-old son Nicholas who attends circles of learning. But eight months ago, they also took in a foster child. He's in daycare too. Three days ago, Angie got a letter from the state saying Illinois would no longer cover his daycare costs.

"We would have to absorb the approximately $800 a month to pay daycare for our foster child, so I can continue to attend work. I really don't know how we're going to do that, but we're determined not to let him down."

On top of that, Angie's husband got sent to Afghanistan a few months ago.

"Some of the options rolling around in my head are quitting work so I can stay home with the children, selling our new car and downsizing so we can have a lower monthly payment, or even just asking some of our family to pool resources so we can pay off this large monthly payment."

This isn't the first time Diane's watched families worry about what's next. She says it's happened a few times since she's been at Circles of Learning but this summer is different.

"Typically it's that back and forth posturing, and it works out. This is the first time we've gotten the letter that says this is your reality, and this is what's going to happen, and that's scary."