US Friends: Remember 211 for Help

Gas is up, food is up, rent has unfairly increased exponentially – but where is the money coming from to keep up with everything that keeps getting more expensive? Thankfully, there is local and immediate help for food, rent, utilities, and more through 211.

Even if you have applied for assistance previously and been turned down, there are still many resources across the United States available to help keep you afloat during times of hardship. And if you have never tried asking for help before, whether because you did not think you would qualify or because of pride, it is worth a shot. There is no need to suffer.

211 is a clearinghouse for help with:

• Food
• Housing/Rent
• Utilities Assistance
• Employment
• Grants
• Healthcare
• Mental Health
• Substance Abuse Help

The website is simple to use (or you can dial 2-1-1 from any phone). Just hover over “Get Help” at the top and select the assistance you need. The site will then provide you with a list of resources and the means to contact and apply for them. Again, you may also simply dial 2-1-1 to have a team member walk you through the process.

Just a side note regarding available grants – one you may want to check into if you are working is called the “Modest Needs” grant. This one in particular is designed for working individuals who are just above the poverty line and may be in that “stuck in the middle” situation where you need help but make too much to qualify for most other assistance.

Remember, there is absolutely nothing wrong with asking for help if you need it. We all need a hand at one time or another and that is why these programs were created. If you do not need assistance at this time, pass the information along to a friend, neighbor, or family member who might. Let’s all stand together and look after each other.

Unexpected Recognition

This news won’t come as any surprise to my Facebook followers (where this blog has an autofeed) but it is still worth sharing here. A couple weeks ago, motivated by some friends on Twitter, I decided to chase a dream to get involved in social work – officially.

In the past, I used to counsel and mentor runaway youths, then moved on to working with parent-child dynamics and on to battered women. I had gone through the ordination process to become a non-denominational minister to back the services I was providing.  Years of doing this however had left me emotionally drained. It became very hard to remain compassionate while staying emotionally detached from the cases and I had to step away.

In speaking with a friend recently, he pointed out a link to two things I enjoyed: helping others and doing research on just about everything. This led me to start a project called Helping Hands Community Research. The propose of this project is to assist people in finding local resources when they are in need – things like food pantries, clothing, financial assistance, etc. – as these sources are often difficult to locate. Since the inception of HHCR, I’ve gotten numerous requests through the website thanks to friends helping spread the word of it via social media.

What has me excited today is that I got a call from CASTLE, a local family services non-profit, who heard about my project and asked that I meet with them in person to give them more information on it. They said it sounded like something that was in line with what they do and would like to try to fit it in as a part of their family services programs.

This… has blown me away. Never before have I been this recognized for anything I’ve done and this presents a huge opportunity for me to really get involved in community service with other local organizations supporting my cause. I’m just amazed! I meet with CASTLE Friday afternoon and am so excited to be able to discuss the project at length and drum up some support.

In the short run, I do hope this becomes a networking opportunity toward actual paid work as I remain unemployed and looking daily, but in the end, just knowing I have done some good here, created something worth being supported – that just makes me so happy. As always, I am here to serve.

I have issues… (People PC, Vonage)

So now that my phone and internet is hooked up in the new place, I start calling around to cancel my services at the old place.

Nightmare #1: Vonage. Decided to call them on my 15 minute break at work today — big mistake (however not as big as signing up with them in the first place). The woman on the phone was speaking so fast in such a heavy Spanish accent that I couldn’t understand 80% of what she was saying.  The majority of it however was some kind of pitch as to why I should keep their service, move it with me, yada yada.  I’m like lady, I’m on break, I don’t have a lot of time, I’m just calling to cancel.  On and on she went and finally I told her look, I have to go, just cancel the service! Come home to find a $30+ cancellation fee AND another $50 debit to my checking account for a modem rebate!  Oh I was furious.  They won’t do anything about it, citing some “fine print” in some contract that I’ve never seen.  The bank will only give me a temporary credit.  They won’t take the modem back.  I’ve got to find some way to get my $50 back from these thieves.

Nightmare #2: People PC.  Another one trying to steal money from me, this time to the tune of $149!  When I called to cancel that service (because I now have my phone and internet all under one company instead of one for the DSL line, one for the home phone, and one for the net), they tried telling me that it would cost me $149 to cancel my People PC Internet service.  Excuse me?  I demanded a supervisor who told me “there is nothing I can do about the fee, as soon as we terminate the account, $149 will automatically be billed to your debit card.”  Ok, wrong answer, but at least now I knew what I had to do and that involved canceling the debit card that I’ve had for over a decade and knew by heart, and getting a new number issued.  Now when I call to say – CANCEL – I will be one ahead on them.  Sure, go ahead, bill me, but it’s without my authorization.  I checked the People PC website, and they say any cancellations within 1 year of new service are subject to this fee.  Alright, I’ve had DSL with them for 2 1/2 years now. Let ’em try it.