Freddy came to the United States five years ago from El Salvador with his 4-year-old son and the child’s mother. They settled in Daly City.
Now, Freddy is a single dad raising his 9-year-old, Jeremy. They live in a two-bedroom apartment with another family, and they are all regular clients of Second Harvest of Silicon Valley.
Freddy works in construction, and his contract work has him travelling all over the Bay Area at different times every week. He did not lose his job during the pandemic, but his hours were greatly reduced. His savings are now completely gone.
I always talk about rent because it is the most expensive, but we also have cell phone bills because we can’t live without our phones. I even need them for work.
Freddy has been a single dad for about two and a half years and arranges his work schedule around Jeremy’s school drop-off and pick-up times.
Jeremy has a hybrid school schedule. Half the week he does virtual learning on his computer at home and the other half of the week he attends school six blocks away. Most of the time, Freddy can do drop-off and pick-up, but the pressure to make money for household expenses means sometimes Freddy has had to leave Jeremy under the supervision of his roommates while he works.
“At first I was scared,” Freddy remembers. “I had to get a phone for Jeremy so I could be in touch with him when I was at work because I knew he was just in our room. Now he’s a little bigger and he’s understanding more of the situation. As a father I’m always worried for my son. He can be 40 years old and I will always worry about him.”
Freddy prepares dinner for Jeremy, and since the pandemic began, he has embraced saving money by taking leftovers to work the next day. Jeremy is a soup lover, and Freddy shares that his son is not a picky eater like other kids because he will try anything Freddy cooks. Freddy said he has been pleasantly surprised by the variety of food they get from Second Harvest.
Freddy was shocked that there were so many food staples provided at his drive-thru distribution in Daly City.
“I never would’ve thought we’d get all those things in the boxes of food. I thought, ‘Any food will be okay, it will help,’ but then I saw milk and eggs and everything I needed, the essentials. It’s helped me so much.”
The holiday season this year reminds Freddy of what he and his son experienced during the holidays last year.
“Last year we didn’t have the money to buy our Thanksgiving dinner and I was already preparing myself and Jeremy to not celebrate and make it just like any other day. But then we went to the distribution, and we received everything in a traditional meal for the holidays [like turkey] so we’re going to do the same this year so we can celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. The food lasts us many days.”
Freddy’s bond with his son has only grown deeper since the pandemic, and his faith in God has helped him move forward during tough times.
“Something that really touched me was Jeremy would ask me every morning, ‘Are you going to work tomorrow?’ So I knew he wanted me to stay. It really touched me that he was so close to me and worried that I was going to leave.”
Freddy doesn’t want to leave his son, but he must earn a living to pay for what they need. The love Freddy has for his son has driven him to work harder during the pandemic. All Freddy can think about now is making enough money for survival, his son’s education, and food.
Freddy’s bond with his son has only grown deeper since the pandemic, and his faith in God has helped him move forward during tough times.
“Something that really touched me was Jeremy would ask me every morning, ‘Are you going to work tomorrow?’ So I knew he wanted me to stay. It really touched me that he was so close to me and worried that I was going to leave.”
Freddy doesn’t want to leave his son, but he must earn a living to pay for what they need. The love Freddy has for his son has driven him to work harder during the pandemic. All Freddy can think about now is making enough money for survival, his son’s education, and food.
Freddy with his 9-year-old son Jeremy on one of their many outdoor outings during the pandemic.
