After the passing of his mother in 2021, Joseph Hosko, who is nearing 60, has learned to live life alone in Tyrone.
Joseph was born with ADHD and a love for music. He plays the saxophone every day for three hours and has a history of being warned and ticketed by the local police for the noise disturbances caused by playing in public.
Joseph finds the cost of living only getting higher while his income stays the same.
“I’m a senior,” he said. “I have a pension and we as seniors, people that worked our whole life, need more money on our pensions.”
Joseph recently moved into senior housing, one way to ease the pressure of rent increases and rising utility bills on his fixed income.
On the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 11th Street, Pennsylvania House is one of the few buildings in downtown Tyrone taller than three stories. It offers subsidized apartments to seniors. Residents pay 30% of their monthly adjusted income. Overlooking the mountain, the building has 100 one-bedroom units within walking distance of the shops and restaurants on 10th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.
Tyrone has been home to Joseph since high school.
He started playing the saxophone at the age of 9 and was first chair saxophonist in high school. He was accepted into the Berklee College of Music in 1983, where he attended on scholarship and graduated.
But, like many creatives, Joseph needs to make ends meet with part-time music lessons to compensate for his pension, which doesn’t follow the rise of inflation.
Read the rest of the profiles of Tyrone area residents Navigating Inflation.
