Supports to Encourage Low-income Families (SELF) has been awarded two Best Practice Awards from The Ohio State University John Glenn School of Public Affairs. The awards were presented on January 20, 2010 at the winter conference of the Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies (OACAA), which represents Ohio’s 52 Community Action Agencies.
The awards were developed to honor innovative and effective Community Action Agency programs that measurably meet the needs of clients, families and communities by helping low-income people become more self-sufficient. A panel of judges selected by the GlennSchool evaluated each nomination independently and assigned points based on their assessment of each nomination.
SELF was awarded a Best Practice Award for its Individual Development Account (IDA) program, which has helped twenty participants purchase assets (a home, post-secondary education, or the capitalization of a small business) totaling more than $724,000. The IDA program was commended for its success in teaching low-income county residents to make stronger fiscal decisions and the value of saving earned income toward a goal.
OACAA and The Ohio State John Glenn School of Public Affairs also awarded SELF’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Super Site with a Best Practice Award for assisting more than 482 Butler County households prepare taxes and helping low-income families receive $432,000 in tax credit refunds in 2009. The Super Site is a collaboration with ButlerCounty’s EITC Coalition which includes the Butler County Department of Job and Family Services, the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati, and the Butler County United Way.
”The IDA program and the EITC Super Site encourage low-income families to retain more of their earned income to help them become more financially stable,” said Jeffrey Diver, Executive Director of SELF. “Also, both programs require substantial collaboration with other organizations in order to make the programs successful. SELF strives toward excellence by providing programs to achieve long lasting change in families’ lives.”
HAMILTON – Supports to Encourage Low-income Families, a co-sponsor of Hamilton’s 2010 Group Workcamps project, and the Site Identification Committee mailed more than 500 home repair applications to select homeowners of Hamilton’s Second and Fourth Wards last week. These applications were sent to owner-occupied homes of low-income, elderly and/or disabled residents and are expected to be returned to SELF no later than December 18.
All pre-selected applicants fit the criteria developed by the Site Identification Committee as recommended by the Group Workcamps Foundation. All applicants are owners of the homes that are potential work sites, are low-income families with small children, elderly, and/or disabled residents of the Second and Fourth Wards in Hamilton.
The Group Workcamp project applications are the first step in determining homes that might receive repairs during camp week, July 4-10, 2010. Between 60 and 80 homes will become work sites during this week. Neither SELF nor Group Workcamps guarantees a home will receive repairs until the week before the camp.
The second step will occur in the beginning of 2010; the Site Identification Committee and community volunteers will conduct personal interviews and home evaluations for each of the homes applied. The Group Workcamps Foundation will send staff members in the spring to begin developing work plans specific to each home that may be chosen out of the applicant pool.
Since the initiative was first announced in June, Duke Energy, the Butler Metropolitan Housing Authority and individual have contributed a combined $2,050 to the project. For more information on volunteering or donating to the project, please call (513) 868-9300.
Supports to Encourage Low-income Families (SELF) is seeking organizations, individuals and businesses to sponsor one of the community action agency’s many low-income families as part of its annual “Adopt-a-Family” program. Sponsors are encouraged to sign up by November 20 if they wish to adopt a family for this holiday season.
Families accepted into SELF’s “Adopt-a-Family” program are not receiving holiday assistance from other social service agencies or similar holiday programs, are documented to be low-income based on the federal poverty guidelines, and are actively working toward self-sufficiency (i.e. steadily employed or seeking employment and/or saving for specific assets).
Through this program, sponsors agree to find ways to enhance the holiday season for a low-income family. Sponsors are provided with very basic details about a Butler County family and a “wish list” for each family member. Wish lists generally include needed clothing items, household items and “wish gifts” such as toys for children. Sponsors generally purchase gifts and wrap them, although some prefer to make monetary donations or donate time to help SELF staff implement the program.
“Hundreds of families seek SELF’s help each year; all of which are striving to regain and maintain their self-sufficiency and improve their financial situation. Sponsors can help these families have a joyful holiday season,” states Vanessa Jackson, SELF’s community relations associate.
If you are interested in sponsoring a family for the holidays, please visit SELF’s website at www.selfhelps.org/adopt and fill out the online form. If you do not have internet access, you may phone SELF’s main office in Hamilton at (513) 868-9300 ext. 214. Residents of Middletown may dial 1-888-432-7022.
Supports to Encourage Low-income Families (SELF) and the Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area (CAP) have collaborated to increase accessibility of the Weatherization Program in Butler County. SELF will serve as Butler County’s Weatherization Intake Center and sign up 1,500 households for weatherization services. CAP will continue to provide the actual weatherization measures for eligible households that apply for the service.
“The Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area is pleased to have provided the Weatherization Program to Butler County for the past 15 years,” said John T. Donnellan, President and CEO of the Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area. “The partnership with SELF allows us to expand outreach efforts in helping Butler County families apply for and receive weatherization.”
The Weatherization Program helps low-income households, specifically those with elderly members, people with disabilities and families with small children reduce heating and cooling costs by increasing the energy efficiency of their homes.
Depending on the household, weatherization work may include:
· insulating walls, basements and attics;
· sealing air leaks around windows and doors with weather stripping or caulk;
· cleaning or repairing heating systems;
· wrapping water heaters, pipes, and minor door repairs.
These home improvements, which can save families hundreds of dollars a year, mean struggling families will have more money for necessities like food, medical attention and clothing.
“This partnership with the CAP of the Greater Dayton Area will integrate weatherization intake with our other energy-related programs such as the winter and summer Home Energy Assistance Program and Percentage of Income Payment Plan (PIPP),” said Jeffrey Diver, Executive Director of SELF. “By linking the programs, we can provide Butler County families with as much help as possible in only one stop.”
SELF is currently accepting applications for weatherization services and has sent out over 900 applications to prior clients. Any families who have received assistance in the last twelve months under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or Home Energy Assistance (HEAP, not including Emergency HEAP) are automatically eligible for weatherization services. Households who do not live in federally subsidized housing, and do not supply their own primary heat source are also generally eligible for services if they fall under 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines as stated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This is an income of $44,100 for a family of four.
Weatherization applications are mailed to the homes of those who qualify. A brief telephone survey with a Weatherization Intake Specialist at SELF will determine eligibility. For more information on weatherization or to receive a weatherization application, contact SELF at (513) 868-9300 or (888) 432-7022 from Middletown. Completed applications may be mailed to SELF, attn: Athena Maly, P.O. Box 1322, Hamilton, OH 45012.
As Butler County’s state-designated Community Action Agency, Supports to Encourage Low-income Families strives to provide the resources and support to enhance the quality of life for county residents by impacting the causes of poverty.
The mission of the Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area is to work with local communities to eliminate the causes and conditions of poverty and to promote individual independence and self-sufficiency.
SUPPORTS TO ENCOURAGE LOW-INCOME FAMILIES
