Infinite Strength offers up to six months of financial assistance grants to single mothers facing metastatic breast cancer. These funds can be used to cover essential expenses such as housing and utilities.
What is Infinite Strength?
Infinite Strength is a nonprofit organization that focuses on single mothers who have been diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer.
This organization as founded by Roberta Lombardi, who was diagnosed in early September 2016. Although Roberta was married and financially stable, she frequently heard less fortunate women talking to their providers through the thin drapes that separate patients in the treatment center. Some of these women were hesitant to continue their treatments – even the ones that prolonged their lives – because they couldn’t afford it and they were afraid it was negatively affecting their families.
When Roberta recovered, she established Infinite Strength to help. This organization focuses solely on serving underinsured or underserved single mothers who have been diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer. They offer financial and emotional assistance to help eligible families.
What does Infinite Strength do?
Infinite Strength provides both emotional support and financial assistance to eligible single mothers and their children.
Emotional Support
Once per month, Infinite Strength hosts a HOPE Retreat. During these retreats, the mothers gather together with a licensed family therapist for free. The children gather for art therapy.
The ultimate result is that these families connect, forge friendships, and build a community so that they don’t have to experience this terrifying disease alone.
Financial Assistance Grants
In addition to emotional support, Infinite Strength also provides grants for single moms with metastatic breast cancer. Once your application is approved, you could receive help every month for up to six months!
The financial assistance grants are paid toward your rent or mortgage. If you do not have rent or mortgage payments, then the organization can pay toward your utilities.
Who is eligible?
In order to be eligible for financial assistance from Infinite Strength, you must meet the following criteria:
- You must be a single mother with a dependent child under the age of 18.
- You must have received a Stage IV metastatic breast cancer diagnosis.
- You must have a household income that does not exceed 200% of the Federal Poverty Guideline.
There may be other eligibility requirements but it was not immediately clear.
How to Apply
You can apply for a grant from Infinite Strength on their website. If you prefer, you can print the application from their website but you will still need to type in the answers. The organization does not accept handwritten applications.
In order to complete your application, you will need to upload some scanned documents to provide evidence about your situation.
Some of the documents that you will be required to upload include:
- Your most recent tax return.
- Your lease, mortgage statement or utility bill
- Letter from your physician that confirms your diagnosis and latest treatment date. This letter must be written on your physician’s letterhead.
- Letter from a hospital nurse navigator or hospital social worker that verifies you qualify for financial assistance. This letter must be written on hospital letterhead.
In addition, you will also need to provide the names and contact information of your physician, nurse navigator or social worker, landlord or mortgage company, employer, and more.
Your completed application must be submitted by the 15th of the month in order for you to be approved before the first of the next month. For example, if you apply before August 15 then you could theoretically be approved by September 1. If you applied on August 16, you would not be able to start receiving help until October 1.
Things to Remember
Infinite Strength only helps low income single mothers who have been diagnosed with metastatic cancer. It is important to make sure you are eligible before you apply for assistance.
This organization does not provide a dollar figure for the amount of assistance that they can provide. It is not immediately clear how much help you can receive, only that the assistance can continue for up to six months.
Summary
Low income single mothers who have received a metastatic breast cancer diagnosis can receive financial assistance grants and emotional support from Infinite Strength. This organization can provide support for up to six months to help mothers and children cope with this life-changing diagnosis.