Indianapolis, IN
Indy mom preps her 3 kids for Christmas in a hotel
There used to be a holiday tradition in Precious Sarver’s home. Two Christmas trees. One for her, one for the kids.
This year, there’s only one tree.
It cost $5 at the dollar store. And it’s sitting on a table in the family’s eastside hotel room, where they’ve been living for more than a month.
“I do everything right,” Sarver said through tears, “and I end up here.”
Sarver, 46, said she and her three children had no choice after a landlord forced them out in hopes of charging more in rent to the next tenant.
Sarver spent some time looking for another place to live, but even the search is expensive. She estimated spending a couple hundred dollars just on application fees. The housing search became even more difficult after the death of her mother.
Now, Sarver is paying $343 each week for the hotel room. There are two full beds, an air mattress, TV, fridge and microwave.
“Look where I’m at,” she said. “I never would’ve thought in a million years that I’d be homeless.”
Sarver has already told her kids that Christmas will have to wait this year. That was after not being able to make them a Thanksgiving meal.
But the tree wasn’t optional. It’s an all-white miniature version, sharing table space with boxes of cereal and paper plates. The family loves the holiday season. Her oldest son counts down the days until B105.7 FM starts playing Christmas music.
“We do the Christmas thing,” Sarver said.
The only thing missing from the tree is ornaments. Those are sitting in one of the two storage units that Sarver is paying $180 for each month.
‘I can’t be the only one’
Sarver said she’s not the only one struggling at the hotel. There’s a mother with five or six kids, and another woman who just gave birth.
“I can’t be the only one,” she said. “I gotta imagine older people going through this is insane.”
They’re part of what homelessness advocates sometimes call the “hidden homeless.” They live out of their cars or double up with friends and family. Or, in Sarver’s case, they end up in an extended-stay hotel.
“Most of the people that clean this place live here with their kids,” she said.
Even outside of the hotel, Sarver can see the extent of the homelessness crisis in Indianapolis. There’s a woman who sits in the cold with a blanket, Sarver said, and no socks.
“So I stopped and gave her a McChicken,” she said. “I don’t have anything else.”
‘I know God’s got a plan’
Sarver said she takes pride in doing the right thing: paying bills on time, helping others, volunteering at a local school.
Things only got worse for Sarver’s family when she accidentally dropped $520 in the hotel hallway.
Security footage shows a man picking it up and walking away.
“That was my phone bill, food money, gas,” she said.
That money also could have helped Sarver cover a security deposit, which she said is one of the biggest obstacles between her family and a home. Plus, Sarver has a nerve condition in both legs that requires her to use a cane, so finding a home isn’t only about money. She also needs something accessible.
Sarver collects about $1,900 a month in disability payments between her and her youngest son, who has special needs. And she gets help paying rent through the Indianapolis Housing Agency’s Section 8 program.
But the program doesn’t help with a security deposit.
For that, Sarver said she’d need to come up with about $1,700.
It’s hard to see where that money will come from.
“But I know God’s got a plan,” she said. “It’s gotta be something else for us.”
Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.
Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
Related
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
FISHERS, Ind. (WISH) — The Nickel Plate Trail pedestrian bridge over 96th Street is officially open.
It was being touted Friday as a major milestone for central Indiana’s growing trail system. The street is the Fishers-Indianapolis border.
Leaders called the project a critical connection point for the Nickel Plate Trail. The new bridge helps move the nearly 17-mile trail closer to its goal of connecting multiple counties through one continuous path.
The bridge also came with a 1.3-mile trail extension. A $4.5 million grant from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources made the bridge possible.
Dale Brier, deputy director of Indiana Department of Natural Resources, talked about the state’s Next Level Trails grant program. “Currently, we have 89 trail projects that that were funded with that money. Fifty-nine of those are complete. We’ve got 12 under construction. As of this opening, we have 167 miles of trail that have now been opened with that grant money.”
People who frequently take the trail for their daily exercises say they’re excited the bridge is finally open.
Alan Errichiello of the Fishers Running Club said, “Extending this down south into Indianapolis is a big game changer for us. It’ll add a lot of miles that we can easily get into.”
Resident Tracy Mundell said, “Trying to get to the other side was nearly impossible, so I think most people didn’t even attempt it. It’s going to be great, we can get over to the other side, and I’m anxious to see what’s over there.”
The final portion of the project, called the Clear Path project, remains under construction.
Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness, a Republican, said, “We need to double-down on that investment, and we know time and time again here in the city of Fishers that trail systems, the ability to get up and get out and get active, is such an important part in our culture of health, that an investment like this is critical.”
Once complete, local leaders say the goal is to provide a more safe and connected routes between Noblesville, Fishers, Indianapolis and other surrounding cities.
Resident Steve Mundell said, “It’s lovely. It’ll be real convenient to get across too.”
What grades did the Indianapolis Colts earn on the 2026 NFLPA report cards?
The NFLPA is no longer able to make their annual report cards public. However, ESPN’s Kayln Kahler was able to obtain a copy of the reports following the 2025 NFL season, and the Indianapolis Colts were again around the middle of the pack.
In these report cards, players rate numerous aspects of the organizations they play for, from ownership to the training facilities and everything in between. According to Kahler, 1,759 players contributed to these grades.
So, where did the Colts end up this year relative to the rest of the NFL this year?
Overall, the Colts ranked 17th. Below is a breakdown of each individual grade they received.
- Treatment of Families: B
- Home Game Field: D
- Food/Dining Area: B
- Nutritionist/Dietician: A-
- Locker Room: C+
- Training Room: B
- Training Staff: B+
- Weight Room: B
- Strength Coaches: A
- Position Coaches: B
- Offensive Coordinator: B
- Defensive Coordinator: B+
- Special Teams Coordinator: B+
- Team Travel: B-
- Head Coach: A-
- General Manager: A
- Team Ownership: A
Of note, although the Colts haven’t been to the postseason in five years, Shane Steichen and Chris Ballard both received high marks.
Carlie Irsay Gordon, Kalen Jackson, and Casey Foyt earned an A in their first year as the primary owners.
The field at Lucas Oil Stadium received a very low mark, earning a D, while the locker room was given a C+. Those were the two lowest grades the Colts received.
Compared to the 2025 rankings, the Colts moved up two spots this year, after coming in at 19th last year.
The biggest jumps the Colts experienced came in the Food/Dining grade, which went from a C to a B. The Team travel grade also jumped from a D+ to a B-.
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — After a shooting, Indianapolis police were searching for three people who fled on foot following the pursuit of a stolen vehicle and its crash on Thursday afternoon.
No information was provided in the notification about the three people being sought. News 8 reached out to IMPD by email to find out details about the three people. Anyone with information regarding the incident or the people who fled the crash was asked to contact the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
The stolen vehicle was linked to a Thursday shooting, prompting the lockdown of a nearby child care center, IMPD said in a media notification. No information was provided about where the shooting happened, what may have led to it, or whether anyone was hurt.
IMPD, however, said the stolen vehicle and crash were not related to a shooting reported at 12:35 p.m. Thursday at a gas station and restaurant at West 38th and Meridian streets.
IMPD officers found the stolen vehicle around 12:45 p.m. Thursday near East 38th Street and Post Road. When a detective attempted a traffic stop, the vehicle fled westbound before crashing a short time later near Whenner Drive, the notification said. It did not say what type of vehicle was abandoned in the crash.
Three people from the crashed vehicle fled southwest on foot. IMPD established a perimeter with assistance from the Indiana State Police, the Lawrence Police Department and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office — using specialized resources, including a state police helicopter, a special weapons and tactics team, and the IMPD’s police dogs — but did not find the three people.
IMPD said a firearm was found in the crashed vehicle, and a man detained at the crash scene was later released once investigators determined he was not directly involved in the incident.
Police have since lifted the lockdown on the child care center.
IMPD’s public information office can be reached at 317-327-3424.
Video: Bill Clinton Says He ‘Did Nothing Wrong’ in House Epstein Inquiry
The Best Time To Drink Coffee for Weight Loss and a Faster Metabolism
Video: Prada Peels Back the Layers at Milan Fashion Week
Defense secretary Pete Hegseth designates Anthropic a supply chain risk
UN Human Rights Council chief cuts off speaker criticizing US-sanctioned official
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
ICE blasts Washington mayor over directive restricting immigration enforcement
Did the EU bypass Hungary’s veto on Ukraine’s €90 billion loan?
How the federal government is painting immigrants as criminals on social media
Where Iran’s ballistic missiles can reach — and how close they are to the US
Has India’s influence in Afghanistan grown under the Taliban?
-
World2 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts2 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Montana1 week ago2026 MHSA Montana Wrestling State Championship Brackets And Results – FloWrestling
-
Louisiana5 days agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Oklahoma1 week agoWildfires rage in Oklahoma as thousands urged to evacuate a small city
-
Denver, CO2 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Technology7 days agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Technology7 days agoStellantis is in a crisis of its own making