WICHITA, Kan. (The Active Age) -- If souls ministered to translated into dollars earned, pastors Homer and Lois Smuck’s lives might be very different right now. The retired couple spent more than 40 years in ministry, serving hundreds of congregants across four states in predominantly rural communities and small churches. Making ends meet while raising three children was tough, and financial constraints along the way forced the Smucks to make difficult decisions upon retirement seven years ago — primarily, how to secure affordable housing with limited resources. For most of their working lives, Homer, 74, and Lois, 72, lived in church parsonages, eliminating the opportunity for the couple to build equity as homeowners. Both were ordained ministers, humble in demeanor, dedicated to their flocks and selfless with their time, energy and resources. In earlier years, Lois stayed home to care for her growing family, occasionally holding outside jobs to supplement their income. When Homer retired from the ministry at age 65, the couple moved from Osborne, Kan., to Wichita to be closer to family. For a time, Homer was employed at a lawn company and Lois worked in food service as they tried to build their Social Security base, a fund they hadn’t been able to contribute much to over the years while living on a pastor’s salary.  Ultimately, the Smucks found themselves in the same plight that millions of U.S. adults 65 and older — and more than 15 percent of the 86,000 senior adults living in Sedgwick County — still face today as poverty rates collide with record high costs of housing, resulting in crisis for many. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines the poverty level as income of $15,060 or less annually for a household of one or $20,440 or less for a household of two, earnings that make home ownership, and sometimes even renting a home or apartment, unachievable. Older adults who may not have experienced poverty in their younger years can suddenly find themselves struggling when life changes such as retirement, declining health and the associated costs of medical care, or the loss of a spouse and their accompanying income, catapults them into a new and difficult reality redefining where they can afford to live. While the Smucks have small pensions from two churches they previously pastored, even combined with social security, they fall below federal poverty levels. Lois Smuck holds up a photo of the Mt Ayr Friends Church in Alton, Kansas in which her and her husband Homer were pastors for a time. (Photo by Selena Favela) “We looked at trying to buy a small home and being totally independent that way, but we could just never have afforded it,” said Homer Smuck. Additionally, Lois Smuck is battling Parkinson’s disease, restricting her mobility and increasing her need for housing that can accommodate disabilities. For a while, the Smucks lived in a recreational vehicle in an RV park, but the lot and utilities rent of $400 per month became too costly. Moving in with family and contributing to those household expenses proved to be the only reasonable solution. After living for a time with their son and then a daughter, they were invited to live with Homer’s sister in El Dorado after she was widowed. While staying with family was not what they envisioned for their senior years, it is a solution they feel fortunate to have. “I know housing would be a huge issue if we didn’t have the help from our family. We’re able to live as well as we are because we are blessed by God and by family,” said Homer Smuck. “My children and siblings have always said that we blessed others through our call to the ministry, and now they are willing to help us. I feel so much gratitude. God has been good.”  ‘A new lease on life’ Working at the heart of the community’s need for affordable housing are local agencies such as Mennonite Housing, whose mission is to provide housing for people who cannot attain such solutions elsewhere, said Byron Adrian, president/CEO. The organization manages approximately 25 properties comprising 1,300 apartment units in Kansas, including Wichita, Andover, Benton, Clearwater, Coffeyville, Derby, Newton and Valley Center. About two-thirds are rented by adults aged 55 and older on a graduated scale based on income. Rents can start as low as $250 per month ranging up to about $650 per month, which includes water, gas and trash; the resident pays only for electricity. Linda Wesley is a resident at Riverfront Senior Residences, a Mennonite Housing property in north Wichita. Now 65, Wesley had experienced homelessness and health concerns and was referred to Mennonite Housing through another agency four years ago.  The opportunity to move into affordable independent housing has been a positive experience, she said. “It’s been a new lease on life, allowing me to be amongst a community,” said Wesley. “It’s not just a place to live, it’s home to me. I can feel proud to be here.” There are different circumstances that drive the need for lower income housing for older adults, said Nancy Sanchez, property manager at Riverfront. “The baby boomers are coming, and in addition to the older residents needing a community, the last couple of years I’ve noticed the residents around 55 (years old) starting to come in,” said Sanchez. “A lot of them are getting sick, losing a spouse, or a home or a job, having to cut down and downsize a lot. The first thing I hear is there is no affordable housing around. They are usually very surprised to see what we can offer.” One of the challenges in finding affordable housing can be waiting times for availability, a reality not just unique to Mennonite Housing. Adrian estimates wait times of six months to a year if an applicant qualifies for housing through his organization. The agency continues to add housing inventory as it can while striving to listen to the changing needs of its residents. “Over the years, we’ve tried to develop properties that are in line with what seniors are looking for, with the kind of amenities they are looking for,” Adrian said. “What we’ve been doing more of lately are duplexes and fourplexes whenever we have land to do that. Seniors like having exterior entrances and garages. There is also still a strong desire for apartment buildings like Riverfront, and we recognize there is a need for both. I don’t see the need getting any less.”  An Exploding Need  The United States’ population ages 65 years and over has soared by 34 percent in the last decade, from 43 million in 2012 to 58 million in 2022, according to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. By 2035, it is expected that 50 million households — approximately one out of every three in the United States — will be headed by someone age 65 or older. In the coming decade, the fastest growth will occur among those over 80, when people are more likely to need accessible housing as well as services and support at home. The US, however, is not ready to provide housing and care for this surging population, according to national experts. The same Harvard study states that more than 10 million households headed by someone 65 and over are “cost burdened,” paying more than a third of their income on housing. Half of these pay more than 50 percent. Such statistics are not a surprise to Monica Cissell, Deputy Director of the Sedgwick County Department of Aging and Disabilities, an entity that oversees the Central Plains Area Agency on Aging. CPAAA’s area includes Butler, Harvey and Sedgwick Counties, encompassing more than 130,000 adults aged 60 and over. “Housing costs are a concern when you are retired and only receive a small Cost of Living Adjustment from Social Security but otherwise do not get raises annually like the rest of us,” Cissell said. “It is high on our list of topics that people call about.” CPAAA offers a variety of programs and information to support older adults or their caregivers who are navigating the complex system of aging services. Staff can field phone calls or walk-in visitors to discuss resources on housing ranging from independent living (including low-income options), to assisted living, long-term care and in-home support. The same information and detailed lists of housing options are also available on CPAAA’s web site. For more complex situations, the agency offers a service called Options Counseling, which provides a deeper dive into the resources available to families for multiple aspects of senior care. “We try to guide people to what their needs are, whether that is independent living, assisted living or apartments, including low-income apartments,” Cissell said. “Or, maybe the older adult would benefit from in-home services or a safety assessment.  We are here to listen to what the scenario is and provide guidance and options.” Seeking Help While solutions to the challenges of poverty, aging and navigating the cost of housing don’t have easy answers, seeking expertise from sources such as Mennonite Housing, CPAAA and others are good places to start. The Active Age also publishes a 55+ Resource Guide on its website, bringing together hundreds of entities from government, nonprofits and businesses that can offer valuable insight into services for the older-adult community. Smuck said that having family who supported him and his wife through the exploring and decision-making process was invaluable, and he is grateful for family who opened their doors and shared their homes. “Needing to live with others wasn’t really what I expected in my older years, but God has peace for us no matter what we go through,” Smuck said. Contact Sherry Graham Howerton at [email protected]. Resources listed in this article: Mennonite HousingWeb address: mhrsi.orgPhone: 316-942-4848 Central Plains Area Agency on AgingWeb address: cpaaa.orgPhone: 855-200-2372 The Active Age 55+ Resource GuideWeb address: theactiveage.com This article was produced as part of the Wichita Journalism Collaborative, which includes The Active Age and 10 other organizations and community groups, including KSN-TV.