Mae Watson Grote | Founder and CEO
Our economy demands that working poor people assume the risks of capitalism, living day-to-day at the margins. COVID-19 will demonstrate that margins have cliffs; deep asset poverty and an eviscerated safety net means we’re facing a future in which many Americans simply will not recover.
Here’s how the Clinic is responding to our customers who are in a financial free fall:
- Next week, we will launch a series of free virtual offerings for customers and nonprofits, including financial coaching referrals to our programs, community trainings on COVID-19 resources, and access to Change Machine where more than 4,000 practitioners get answers to their questions, exchange resources, and deepen their connections with colleagues.
- The Clinic is rapidly evolving Change Machine to help nonprofit partners on the front lines expand their reach with virtual coaching services, respond to heightened financial insecurity caused by COVID-19, and drive advocacy and resource-generation grounded in the stories and experiences of their customers.
- We will equip the field to bridge the digital divide exacerbated by COVID-19. While fintech companies exclude low-to moderate-income consumers, and predatory actors target those same consumers in the face of emergent federal and state relief, the Clinic will be launching an inclusive product Marketplace that empowers practitioners to recommend promising products for their customers.
As we dig deeper with our customers and nonprofit partners on the front lines, we thank you for your engagement and support. Together, we’ll work to emerge from this crisis closer to our vision of a country where ALL are financially secure.
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In the wake of the Great Recession, natural disasters, and a government shutdown, the Change Machine community put $42 million back into the pockets of working poor Americans.