Tynisha
Tynisha is a student and the mother of an infant son. Prior to the pandemic, she worked with autistic children. She has utilized public benefits programs in the past, but found them time-consuming and difficult. “It’s basically a rollercoaster. You never know what you’re going to get, what type of representative you’re going to get. And you always have to like explain yourself, like why you need it. Like, why else would I need it? I’m a mom. So, it’s just like, you just have to plead your case all the time. And I feel like with Bridge Project, I didn’t have to do that. I actually felt like this was a joke, like no lie. I really thought this was a joke because I never heard of programs like this. Never. And I literally am grateful.”
Tynisha just graduated with her bachelor’s degree, and dreams about completing her PhD in Psychology. She said having a guaranteed income has made her more ambitious. “I want to help, and I just want to do anything to fulfill my purpose basically…It’s a stepping stone. It’s not something that’s going to make me stop and just be like, ‘yeah, I’m going to do this forever.’ That’s just not how I think.”
“I actually felt like this was a joke, like no lie. I really thought this was a joke because I never heard of programs like this. Never. And I literally am grateful.”