• In 2000, per capita income was $16,220, and 33.5% of residents lived below the poverty line. 47% of people living in poverty are not yet 18, while 20.9% are 65 or older.
• The 2000 U.S. Census reveals that nearly 33% of Cairo residents over 25 have not attained a high school degree; more than 10% have not completed ninth grade.
• Cairo has no major restaurants, no hospital, no recreational facilities for children, and one grocery store. Drugs are common. Old, shuttered businesses are plentiful throughout town and decay is dominant.

A small city only 40 blocks long, Cairo needs help. Protected by a levee, its streets lie on top of wet ground, and are cracking and buckling. Employment opportunities are scarce. The nearest cities (where there might be jobs) are at least 40 miles away across state lines, and few people can afford the transportation to get there.

The schools in Cairo are struggling as well, and are under state supervision. Attracting and keeping teachers is difficult; the district is even unable to offer many of the courses required for college admission.

Family-to-Family is aiding families in Cairo and in the nearby rural communities of Mounds and Pulaski.