County to host discussion to aid women in poverty

November 17, 2014

SOLANO COUNTY – While the effects of the Great Recession have begun to subside, poverty remains an issue in Solano County, impacting women and children disproportionately to men.  In an effort to address the issue, the County will host a public discussion on Tues., Nov. 18 from 8 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at the County Event Center, located at 601 Texas Street in Fairfield.

Poverty is a crisis on a national and local level.  The average poverty rate in Solano County is 14.2 percent, while some neighborhoods have rates as high as 20 to 39 percent.  Women and children tend to feel the effects of poverty more than their male counterparts, as women play the dual role of breadwinner and caregiver, making it even harder to make ends meet.

"The issue of poverty is a topic that is often not dealt with but continues to grow as we are now seeing a larger percentage of that group being women," says Solano County Supervisor John Vasquez.  “I am calling upon all of us to begin a discussion about our roles in trying to reduce the rates of women in poverty in Solano County.”

The goal of the women in poverty discussion is to unite the many agencies and not-for-profit support groups devoted to helping those in need in Solano County come together in one place to fully address the situation and develop viable solutions for the community.

Speakers from Solano County Health and Social Services and UC Davis Center for Poverty Research will discuss the structure of poverty in the United States and Solano County and address ways to approach local resources and services in the community, making them available to women and children.

“This Senior Poverty Summit workshop hosted by Supervisor Jim Spering last month showed us that a high percentage of seniors in poverty are women,” says Vasquez.  “Our hope is to discover ways to reduce the number of women in poverty before they become seniors.”

The discussion to aid women in poverty also supports the County's commitment to support the United Way’s Rise Together Bay Area Campaign to cut poverty in half by 2020.

For more information please contact Jennifer Hamilton at [email protected] and (707) 784-6129.