LIVE UNITED Y’All!

Nearly everyone would like to have a little more change in their pockets going jingle, jangle, ling.  It’s fun to think about planning a vacation, eating at a nice restaurant, or going to a concert when you’ve got some extra money.  However, for many individuals and families, meeting their basic needs is a daily struggle, and having some extra income is vital for taking care of the necessities – food, housing, safety, and health.  When stresses about life’s necessities mount, education takes a back seat.  However, we all know that the more education you have, the more money you make.  So what about those who are struggling to make ends meet, how can we help them with their education when other needs must be addressed first? 

Metro United Way understands the importance of addressing basic needs, so we are involved in efforts that boost income to make it easier for those of us under financial stress to focus on education.  We view this approach as providing the insulation of the education pipeline – making sure necessities are addressed so we can effectively remove barriers to educational attainment.

One of the efforts we support is making sure that local residents get all the tax credits for which they are eligible.  Since 2001, Metro United Way has actively promoted and supported efforts to provide free tax preparation and filing services, with a goal of making sure families who qualify with incomes up to $49,000 are taking advantage of the earned income tax credit (EITC).  The EITC can place as much as $5,666 back into the hands of hard working families.  With our partners –  the Louisville Asset Building Coalition, the Southern Indiana Asset Building Coalition and HJW Career and Financial Literacy Institute, we are making sure that individuals and families can get their taxes done free and receive eligible credits like the EITC.  Since we began working in this area, our partners have collectively served over 54,000 individuals and families, returning $59 million in federal and state tax refunds, of which over $25 million has been in the form of the EITC.  We have also saved filers an estimated $10 million in tax preparation and filing fees.   Learn more by clicking on the links above.

In addition, Metro United Way is working with Louisville Metro Government to promote a campaign known as “Through Any Door”, which provides benefit screenings for programs such as SNAP (food stamps), K-Chip (health insurance for kids), WIC (supplemental food for families with young children), Free and Reduced Price School Lunches, and other benefits.  The goal is to increase the uptake of these benefit programs for eligible families by streamlining the application process by working through a variety of trusted community partners.  Since launching in the Spring of 2009, this effort has assisted over 1,600 individuals, with annualized benefits in the millions of dollars.  We anticipate that this effort, along with others that are forming, will connect these benefits, also known as work supports, to more families than ever before so that basic needs can be met, and that families have more time and resources to support the educational attainment of their children. 

Bottom line:  Efforts like these help provide more money for food, housing, safety, and healthcare, and for educational attainment.  Jingle, jangle, ling!

General, Income benefit screening, Education, Income, tax preparation

If you were to close your eyes and think about your ideal place to live, what would come to mind?  For some of us, it would be a cottage on a beach where it was warm all year long.  For others, it would be living in the mountains or on several acres out in the country.  But let’s think about living here in the Louisville area.  We’ve already got a lot of things that make living here good: museums and the arts, sports, beautiful parks, entertainment, top-notch health care, plenty of shopping and restaurants, the Ohio River, colleges and universities, and the Derby, to name a few. 

But let’s dare to dream even bigger.  What other things would we want in our ideal metropolitan area?  How about if every child was wanted and loved, kept safe, and was given every chance to develop his/her mind and talents?  What if marriages were strong and loving and couples received the coaching and guidance they needed to make their marriage healthy and vibrant?  What if every older adult was loved and given the resources he/she needed to remain as independent as possible for as long as possible?  And when that was no longer possible, that they would be assured of having people around them who cared well for them and helped them to maintain their dignity.

Wouldn’t it be great to live in a community where people who have physical and mental disabilities were accepted as equals and where their human worth would be valued?  Imagine a place where animals were cared for and wouldn’t live their lives chained or caged or neglected or abused.  How about living in a place where people took seriously their responsibility to tread lightly on the earth so that future generations would have a healthy and beautiful place to live?  Would you like to live in a place where everyone who wanted to further their education had the ability to do so?  What if we lived in a place where everyone who wanted a job had one, and that job paid a living wage so that everyone could afford decent housing and could provide a reasonable standard of living for themselves and their family?

To quote John Lennon, “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.”  Together, we can bring this city and the surrounding area closer to our ideal vision.  But in order to build a place that better suits the needs of everyone, we need everyone’s voice and everyone’s help.  So speak up.  What does your ideal community look like?

Advocacy, Education, Health, Income Advocacy, Community, Education, Health, Income, Louisville, opportunity

Perhaps none of us are immune to the economic crisis we see unfolding before us everyday. Indeed, the Louisville area is struggling along with every other city in the nation. While we all have our own way of dealing with the implications of this terrible downturn, we must keep in mind its effects on the particularly vulnerable among us: the elderly, low-income families, the recently unemployed, the disabled, and our very young. Basic needs are more important than ever before. Investments and efforts to alleviate hunger and food insecurity, promoting housing and financial stability, and connecting people to public benefits and tax credits are all very important in providing the “safety net” we all hope is strong and stable when we need it most.

Many organizations, including Metro United Way, are coming to together to coordinate a response to the many needs we see growing in our community. Meaningful and relevant responses to immediate needs are obviously important now, but hopefully not at the expense of our long-term solutions. Our community can address critical and immediate needs without overshadowing the important work of developing long-term strategies that lead to a unique community strength, an ability to thrive, not just survive.

Everyday, each of us practice proactive measures to keep us from getting in bad situations in the first place. We can all relate to the importance of checking our engine oil before going on a big trip, brushing our teeth regularly, and the painting of the exterior of our houses. Prevention is a word we all know and understand in our everyday lives, it is no different for the life and vitality of our community. Advocating on behalf of others for greater access to public benefits like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP (formerly known as the Food Stamp program), the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Earned Income Tax Credit is equal to advocating on behalf of the whole community, that means me and you.

These public programs not only promote physical and financial health, but bring so much back into the community, especially in tough times. SNAP creates economic activity by bringing dollars into local businesses, securing jobs, and ultimately bringing more taxes into our community. EITC is equally beneficial to stimulating the local economy, but many of the families eligible do not know about this very helpful credit. Finally, what better way to invest in our future than through our kids? They must be healthy now if they have the hope of being healthy later in life. Personally, I want to know that future generations in my community are there for me when I need them most. Selfish? Maybe, but I don’t think I am alone my thinking.

Interested in EITC work?  Check out the Louisville Asset Building Coalition website on how to become a VITA site volunteer: http://www.labcservices.org/

Want to help more eligible kids get enrolled in KCHIP? Check out Kentucky Youth Advocates website and learn more about Children’s Advocacy Day at the state capital on February 12: http://www.kyyouth.org/Advocacy/

Want to learn more about the benefits of SNAP and help eliminate local barriers to access SNAP? Check out the Food Research Action Center’s webpage on food stamps: http://www.frac.org/html/federal_food_programs/programs/fsoutreachprg.html#anchor826588

Advocacy, General, Health, Income advocate, Community, Health, Income