Tweet
I volunteer at a center where we help low income people, (most are elderly) or those who have a crisis of some sort, such as job loss, fire, or death of the bread winner. Our most popular items are clothing, food, baby items and help paying utilities.
This afternoon one of my peers at the center showed me a photo copy of a letter that one of our "regulars" brought to her. The "regular" is an elderly woman who never worked outside the home--was a home maker to a farmer. She is probably around 85 years old. She owns her own home in town (sold the farm and moved to town when the mr passed on after cancer, which took a good part of her savings). Her only child has also passed on as well, so no family. She lives alone, on investments but it amounts to less than $1000 a month. Out of that, she pays her electric, gas, food, taxes, insurance, prescriptions, eye glasses, clothing....
Anyway, basically the letter is from her social worker with the state, from the local county office. It states that she is to estimate the value of any cash or food items given or gifted to her or any other members of her house, and income from any boarders, and turn that in, so that her food stamps for the following amount can be adjusted accordingly. In other words, if she comes into the center and gets $15 dollars of grocery items this month, and turns it in, next month instead of getting her approved $80 of food stamps, she will only get $65. She also is to report any other social services she is using, such as meals on wheels delivered by the senior center.
We assume if she got this letter, so did or will others.
All we can see that will come out of this, is that people will no longer qualify for food stamps and be needing centers and pantries to provide more of their food items instead.
If she could eat on her $80 a month in food stamps, she wouldn't be coming to us for help. Also, food stamps do not cover soap, paper products, deoderant, toothpaste and such. The food stamp program also pays for seeds or plants that will produce food.
Our center is only open 1 day a week for just a few hours so we really aren't in a situation to actually feed them a meal while they are there to help off set this. We did think perhaps some of the churchs may pitch in--ours has a dinner every Wed night that any one is welcome to come to-perhaps if others did something similar a time or two a week on different days that could help.
We understand where they are coming from, as food stamps are designed to help provide food, not to completely provide all the food. Yet we have a few clients who simply have no other means.
It just seems harsh for the state to say we won't help you if someone else is also helping you. That isn't helping the people to move forward. The way the letter reads, if a neighbor gave her some tomatoes and other veggies from his garden (as neighbors often share extra produce) even that would have to be reported.
I think this is a loophole and lot are falling into that have no way of getting out......guess I am just venting here.....
This afternoon one of my peers at the center showed me a photo copy of a letter that one of our "regulars" brought to her. The "regular" is an elderly woman who never worked outside the home--was a home maker to a farmer. She is probably around 85 years old. She owns her own home in town (sold the farm and moved to town when the mr passed on after cancer, which took a good part of her savings). Her only child has also passed on as well, so no family. She lives alone, on investments but it amounts to less than $1000 a month. Out of that, she pays her electric, gas, food, taxes, insurance, prescriptions, eye glasses, clothing....
Anyway, basically the letter is from her social worker with the state, from the local county office. It states that she is to estimate the value of any cash or food items given or gifted to her or any other members of her house, and income from any boarders, and turn that in, so that her food stamps for the following amount can be adjusted accordingly. In other words, if she comes into the center and gets $15 dollars of grocery items this month, and turns it in, next month instead of getting her approved $80 of food stamps, she will only get $65. She also is to report any other social services she is using, such as meals on wheels delivered by the senior center.
We assume if she got this letter, so did or will others.
All we can see that will come out of this, is that people will no longer qualify for food stamps and be needing centers and pantries to provide more of their food items instead.
If she could eat on her $80 a month in food stamps, she wouldn't be coming to us for help. Also, food stamps do not cover soap, paper products, deoderant, toothpaste and such. The food stamp program also pays for seeds or plants that will produce food.
Our center is only open 1 day a week for just a few hours so we really aren't in a situation to actually feed them a meal while they are there to help off set this. We did think perhaps some of the churchs may pitch in--ours has a dinner every Wed night that any one is welcome to come to-perhaps if others did something similar a time or two a week on different days that could help.
We understand where they are coming from, as food stamps are designed to help provide food, not to completely provide all the food. Yet we have a few clients who simply have no other means.
It just seems harsh for the state to say we won't help you if someone else is also helping you. That isn't helping the people to move forward. The way the letter reads, if a neighbor gave her some tomatoes and other veggies from his garden (as neighbors often share extra produce) even that would have to be reported.
I think this is a loophole and lot are falling into that have no way of getting out......guess I am just venting here.....
Comment