"I would have been lost without this help!"

Tressa was contacted in May 2024 to assist a gentleman with his Social Security application. He had not worked in 15 months due to his disabilities and was staying temporarily in the home of his deceased parents which his siblings needed to sell to close their estate. They were running out of estate funds to cover the cost of the home so it was becoming a dire situation for everyone. 

When she first met with him, he presented as intelligent and proud, so his inability to work and resulting living situation weighed on him heavily. He felt like he was a burden to his family. He had a long work history and enough work credits to be eligible for SSDI. Using the SOAR model, she helped him apply for both SSI and SSDI and got the MSR co-signed by a psychiatric PA. 

He had just returned to Michigan the previous year so there were some challenges obtaining his records from other states, but ultimately, they prevailed. With persistent contacts to follow up with additional information for DDS, he finally received a decision in January, just as he was informed that the home needed to be put on the market because the estate was out of money. 

He was awarded both SSDI and SSI in a monthly payment of $1,505, but he qualified for a back payment of approximately $30,000. 

Tressa worked with SSA and got some of the back pay released within a week of the award as the monthly payments won't start until March. With this partial back pay, he is now able to purchase his own trailer home closer to his siblings who can sell their parents' home to satisfy the estate. 

The gentleman was near tears when he was professing his gratitude for the support of SOAR assistance saying, "I would have been lost without this help!"