Ronald Sorrell never dreamed he would have to sleep in a tent in the woods by the White River, but that’s where he lived for two years after he lost his job at Argos Manufacturing in Anderson.

“I had like 20 blankets piled on me every night,” said Sorrell, eating a free meal of ravioli and salad at the Christian Center in downtown Anderson. “One night, it got down to 16 degrees below zero.”

Recently, he has found occasional work doing odd jobs, but he doesn’t get regular hours. He is living with a friend until he can find a full-time job to support himself.

Sorrell is one of many area residents living under or near the poverty line.

According to the most-recent data available — U.S. Census Bureau estimates from 2005 to 2007 — 19.1 percent of Anderson’s residents live in poverty. That number is up from 13.4 percent in 2000.

In Madison County, the data show, an estimated 12.9 percent of the population falls below the poverty line.

And nationwide, 13.3 percent of the population is classified as being in poverty.

How is poverty defined?

The “poverty line” is currently set by the federal government at an annual income of $21,203 for a family of four. For a single person under the age of 65, the threshold is $10,590.

But that definition is troubling to some — particularly, perhaps, to those who work in the helping professions.

“In America, a family of four honestly can’t survive on $20,000,” said Brandon Mott, director of outreach at East Side Church of God. “The line is drawn way too low, and that is the line that so many things, like welfare support, are dependent on.”

The census estimates also revealed that 14.9 percent of Anderson families fell below the poverty threshold.  

However, with the economy’s recent turn for the worse, the numbers may have increased since the Census Bureau’s 2005-07 estimates.

“In the last five years, poverty has really started to cast a shadow over the city of Anderson because of the automotive industry leaving,” said Jeffery Cottrell, program director at the Urban League of Madison County.

In his view, the situation has gotten particularly difficult in the past two years.

“When you say poverty, most people think of a shack in Mississippi, but that’s not the case,” Cottrell said. “There are several homes in this city that look great on the outside, but they aren’t very well furnished and there is no food in the home. When you walk inside, you start to see the effects of poverty.”

According to a 2007 document from the City of Anderson that requested government assistance for impoverished areas, several underlying factors have contributed to the economic decline in Anderson.

Those factors include the city’s high rate of unemployment, low rate of educational attainment, high rates of suspensions and expulsions from schools, high dropout rates, substandard housing and blighted neighborhoods.

The biggest factor, according to the document, is the “dramatic loss of manufacturing jobs that had sustained the community for decades.”

While the causes of poverty may be varied, the problem’s geography has been mapped by project contract specialist Kimberly Rayford and the Department of Community Development in Anderson.

Rayford said the south-central part of the city had been affected the most by poverty. She identified that region as being bounded by Oak Street on the north, Euclid Drive on the west, 38th Street on the south and Scatterfield Road on the east.

“That is where we have concentrated a lot of extra policing, homeless groups, programs for youth and neighborhood revitalization projects,” Rayford said. “It is a sad thing to see that, for the most part, the whole central area of our city contains a lot of crime, there are a lot of families that are in poverty, there are a lot of abandoned buildings and homes, and the schools that are in this area struggle with ISTEP scores.”

“It’s a reality that we have people living in conditions that you just wouldn’t think would exist in this community,” she added.

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the majority of people in poverty are women. In fact, in Anderson, about 26 percent of the families that have no husband present are below the poverty line.

“A lot of people don’t realize how many women are homeless or really close,” Mott said. “One reason is they get stuck with a child, and then there is no way out, because they have to work two or three jobs just to support the family.”

Cottrell agreed, saying that more women are in poverty because they have to raise children without a father figure present.

Rayford said the Department of Community Development in Anderson is trying to help single mothers out of poverty.

“We have some single mothers who have recently become home buyers for the first time after we provided down-payment assistance and helped them clean up their credit,” she said. “Now they are homeowners, which was an unrealistic dream before some of the programs were in place.”

Blacks also are more likely than others to be in poverty.

“Historically, opportunities have not been equal for African-Americans and minorities,” Rayford said.

Mott said that blacks are still trying to recover from the prejudices that they faced decades ago.

“We are basically three generations removed from the segregation of the ’60s, and sociologically speaking, they say it takes three generations to move up one class in a social stratification structure,” he said.

While area residents may be struggling with the current economy and the lack of opportunities for economic advancement, Rayford sounded positive that the City can overcome the seemingly bleak situation.

“It might get worse before it gets better, but I believe that there are things in place that will help our community and the social climate,” she said.

Sorrell, too, is hopeful about the future. And although he’s still underemployed, he plans to stick around until things get better.

“Anderson is my home now,” he said. “I didn’t think I would end up without a job, but it’s my home.”