Mother's hopes for better life curbed; Mom with 5-year-old daughter struggles to make ends meet after moving to Kelowna from Vancouver
The Daily Courier (Kelowna)
December 3, 2008
By: Steve MacNaull

Jill de Roos is finding out just how expensive it is to live in Kelowna.

The single mom moved to the Okanagan from Vancouver with her five-year-old daughter, Jade, in September for a better life.

"But I'm really struggling, definitely," said de Roos.

"I thought the cost of living was high in Vancouver, but it's even higher in Kelowna." In Vancouver, the mother and daughter lived in a rented two-bedroom basement suite that cost $700 a month.

In Kelowna, she's paying rent of $1,325 a month for a two-bedroom unit in a fourplex.

"When I started to look for places here, they were either dives or the landlord didn't want kids or a single mom." The move also means de Roos's pay has taken a hit.

In Vancouver, she worked at a restaurant and made $10 an hour plus tips. Here, she works in a women's clothing store and makes $9.50 an hour.

"At the restaurant, I had to work nights, and that's what I wanted to get away from so I could spend more time with Jade," said de Roos.

"That's also why we moved to Kelowna, so we can be in a smaller, safer, nicer city." Jade attends kindergarten and goes to the downtown Kelowna Boys and Girls Club daycare after school until her mother picks her up.

Initially, the daycare cost was $600 a month.

De Roos has since applied for a subsidy, so she now pays $340 a month.

"I had to borrow money from my dad for a few months to make ends meet," she said….