Sleepless Nights and Constant Worry - One Client's Story

“I had reached my wit’s end with phone calls from collection agencies.” 67 year-old Gloucester County resident Marlene Minerd had accumulated thousands of dollars in credit card bills, and she didn't know what to do. Living on a fixed Social Security income of only $529 per month, credit cards had become the only way she could afford basic necessities.

Marlene Minerd

For most of her life, Marlene had been a stay-at-home mom to seven children, including one grandchild. While the children were still young, she was divorced and had to rely on $1,000 per month in child support to care for her family. When the youngest turned 18, the support payments ended and she found herself with a new challenge. “I never had the luxury of working,” she says. “When the child support stopped, I realized I had no job skills, no way to support myself. So I did what I knew: cleaning houses and babysitting.”

As she got older, work became less feasible and she hadn't earned enough in her lifetime to qualify for Social Security. So, at age 62, she decided to collect half of her ex-husband's Social Security. That $529 per month wasn't enough to make ends meet, so when a credit card offer arrived in the mail, she replied. Soon, one card became five, and Marlene found herself increasingly burdened with bills, which she could not pay. For five years, she struggled to make the minimum payments, but it was impossible. “The phone was ringing off the hook,” she says. “I had many sleepless nights and constant worry.”

Desperate, she realized she needed to file for bankruptcy, but she couldn’t afford an attorney. Then she heard that South Jersey Legal Services provides legal assistance at no cost to clients. Within a few days of her request, a pro bono attorney was on her case.

Marlene’s Chapter 7 case was handled by Dan Hutchinson in Woodbury. “I immediately felt comfortable with the staff at SJLS, and I was surprised at how quickly I was contacted by the pro bono attorney. The attorneys involved in my case really listened to me and answered all of my questions. Money simply was not an issue — they treated me like I was a paying client.” Marlene’s bankruptcy was filed within a few weeks and discharged in November. Finally, she could get on with her life, which she says was a “great relief.”

“I really don't know what I would have done with-out the services of the Private Attorney Involvement Program. It is a wonderful thing that a program like this exists for those of us who cannot afford a lawyer. I wish the attorneys who take our cases could know how much we appreciate the work they do and the way it impacts on our daily lives.”

Kate Myers — Director of Pro Bono Services South Jersey Legal Services

This article appeared in the Spring 2007 edition of For the Public Good.