ST PETERSBURG, Fla. — The holidays are often referred to as the most wonderful time of the year, but for some, they can also be the exact opposite.
In Tampa Bay, many people struggle to afford the price of living in paradise, from housing to everyday groceries.
“We actually didn’t spend a lot of money on the ornaments. We went to the Hospice Thrift Store and Sunshine Thrift,” St Petersburg resident Kim Zeches told ABC Action News as she showed us her little Christmas tree decked in colorful lights and ornaments.
“This is one of my son’s favorites, Spongebob,” she said, “This is one that my mother would’ve loved.”
In the last two and a half years, Zeches' mother passed away, and then her husband.
“It's a little much having lost, at least, you know, most of my family,” she said. “So I ended up having to sell my house when my husband passed away.”
Zeches has worked in the cafeteria in Pinellas County schools for 20 years. Now she picks up evening shifts in the maintenance department too.
“I have three pets to feed. They were my mother's and my husband's pets," she said. "They just are part of my family now, but the cost of pet food is astronomical."
Pet food, groceries, and bills have all gone up.
Her average water bill went up by 30%.
Her power bill with Duke Energy went up $100 to $245 dollars in November.
Her rent was supposed to go up $400 dollars, but she was able to negotiate with her landlord for half that.
Zeches is just one of so many Tampa Bay residents experiencing a record-high increase in the cost of living.
As of Nov. 2022, rent in Tampa was up almost 40% since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, according to Apartment List.
And a recent study from WalletHub found Tampa Bay ranks 3rd in the U.S. metro areas with the highest rise in inflation.
Mental health non-profit Directions for Living CEO April Lott explained that these are stats affecting everyone.
“What we see now certainly is that it is all of us. I mean, literally, it is all of us,” Lott said.
She explained that two populations, in particular, have been hit the hardest: the elderly living on fixed incomes and families with dependent children.
“People who are over the age of 62 are in need of all kinds of things, but in particular, they are becoming homeless at an alarming rate,” Lott said.
The non-profit’s seen a 400% increase in need from people 62 and older, but they’ve seen more than a 1000% increase in parents who need help with housing.
“We used to have knowledge of about 10 to 12 families who were street homeless at any given time in Pinellas County. We are now at 140 families who are street homeless,” Lott exclaimed.
This holiday season, mental health experts said it’s important for people to know you are not alone.
“Usually, this is a time of year when everyone is festive, and for the most part, people want to buy into the festivities," mental health educator Natasha Pierre said. "But we also need to be aware that it isn't festive for everyone."
She added that handling the emotions wrapped in Christmas chaos starts with self-care.
“Recognizing that there's no manual on how to approach the holidays, so if the holidays mean I am binge-watching my favorite TV show in bed, and my Do Not Disturb is on, then that's what it is for you," Pierre said. "If it means that you are going to friend hop or family hop and go to every house, then that's what it is for you."
When it comes to finances this holiday, Achieva Credit Union advises writing out a budget that includes Christmas expenses as well as the New Year.
“Holiday travel, gifts, food, parties, traditions,” explained Achieva Spokesperson Tasha Cohen-Glynn. “Not just the gifts you're gonna buy, but all the parties you’re going to attend.”
Instead of focusing on what you can’t do or give, make this holiday about gratitude.
“One of the best ways to get yourself out of a funk is to volunteer, is to do something for someone else,” Pierre advised. “Giving and being grateful are very, very effective, inexpensive and natural ways to alleviate some of the heaviness that fell during the season.”
Lott added that everyone can do something to help.
“If you believe in the power of prayer, do that. If you believe in the power of positivity, do that,” she said. “If all you can do is be kind to somebody, you… truly, really never know… being kind to somebody could change the trajectory of how they think and feel for that day or week or month.”
Cohen-Glynn added that gratitude works with children too. She advised encouraging children to choose one item they want to receive and then focus on giving to others by volunteering.
Zeches confirmed gratitude gives her strength every day.
“I try to be grateful for just those kinds of moments," she said. "I have friends from my old church, from my new church. I have a totally different kind of family. It's more like an extended family. I just feel that God's got me through this whole thing and people need to know that they're not alone."
For anyone who may have a need this holiday season, we put together a list of resources throughout the community that may be able to help:
- Findhelp.org is a search engine for a variety of resources based on your zip code.
- Directions For Living (Mental health, housing, resource connections)
- Homeless Empowerment Program (Housing and critical support services)
- Metropolitan Ministries (Family support including food and housing)
- Feeding Tampa Bay (Food)
- Grace Point discount fees for mental health, healthcare services
- Reach St Pete (Resources for homeless, at-risk, low-income)
- The Kind Mouse (Food)
- buynothingproject.org (Neighbors giving away items)
- Freecycle (Free items)
- Family Promise (Family housing)
- Daystar Life Center (Food, housing, utilities, financial literacy)
- United Way Suncoast (Pathways to education and financial stability)
- National Alliance for Mental Illness(Mental health, support groups for families in crisis)
Free event this weekend for dealing with stress:
- Free stress relief clinic at Acupuncture & Herbal Therapies and Traditions School of Herbal Therapies
- Dec. 22 and 23 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Possible billing discounts:
- Duke Energy offers payment plans for bills you can’t afford
- T-Mobile has wifi hotspots free for students
- Spectrum may offer wifi discounts for kids in school