MANGO, Fla. — As Hillsborough County Schools prepare to break for summer at the end of this week, Metropolitan Ministries has been scrambling to identify families on the verge of homelessness.

It’s harder to track students when not in school, and they fear some families on the verge of homelessness could be homeless by the time school starts again in the fall.

Metropolitan Ministries is targeting ten schools with high-risk students, and so far has identified and provided assistance to more than 600 families since the beginning of March.

One of them is Nubia Rivera, who has two daughters attending Mango Elementary School.

“Pay my rent, or like, I need help in paying my water bill, paying my light bill or if I need clothing for the kids, or food, they have helped a lot.”

Rivera was out of work when her fiance, an electrician, also lost his job.

The couple struggled to make ends meet, and eventually spotted an email from Pathways to Hope, a program Metropolitan Ministries says is trying to prevent students from becoming homeless.  

Once a family has been identified, it can provide assistance based on need, from helping to pay bills, to clothes for kids or food assistance.

Sometimes, said Rivera, one bill or expense can determine making rent or not.

“It’s really tough because the light bill has been coming out really expensive.”

At Mango Elementary, Pathways to Hope Supervisor Marie Staple says her job is all about listening, and spotting the signs of a student in need.

She says regressive grades or a high attendance rate are some of the first signs of trouble at home.

“Usually those families are homeless and they are living in their cars,” said Staple. “So as a result of that, once we find that out then we are able to then get a referral from either the principal and or the school social worker and then reach out to that family.”

Pathways to Hope will continue its work in schools over the summer.

For more information on the program, how you can get involved or find help, visit Pathways to Hope.