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It's a well worn quote but it certainly applies to the Windham County Heat Fund. "It was the worst of times and it was the best of times." All of the tremendous people, churches, businesses and organizations in our area deserve an update of what happened with their donations this year.
This was the third year that Daryl Pillsbury and I raised money to help people with fuel bills. We knew things were bad when we started this effort, but we had no idea how bad they would get.
We spent exactly $0.00 on administration and overhead and almost all donations were funneled through Guilford Cares so that donors could have the ability to have their generosity be tax deductible.
There were 131 separate donations, including large ones from Fleming Oil and Entergy, as well as multiple donations from some individuals and from local church Sunday collections. A total of $23,138.91 was raised.
We had a little money left over from last year and that allowed us to give out $24,636.28 to 67 families in need. There is $263.84 left in our account at the Brattleboro Savings and Loan and we will use that to help with our efforts next heating season.
Last year we received $10,187 in donations from 86 donors. It is difficult to compare recipients because we gave money directly to the HELP Fund last year and they provided support.
We continue to work with the Windham County HELP Fund. They are a committed group of local human service workers who meet weekly to find a way to help people in need. All of the requests for fuel assistance go through their screening and through SEVCA. Applicants are screened for eligibility for all available fuel assistance programs and they use our Heat Fund only as a last resort.
When people call me for help I require them to have first made contact with SEVCA to see if they are eligible for any of their fuel assistance programs. That way, the money we raise is used for those who fall through the cracks. And there are plenty of individuals and families who fall through the cracks.
A family or individual that earns too much to qualify for assistance but can't afford another tank of fuel will be given a minimum delivery from the Heat Fund. That means that I arrange for payment and delivery of from 100 to 150 gallons of oil or kerosene.
We also received two donations of wood which we were able to have delivered to two families. In addition to paying for fuel deliveries we also paid balances on fuel bills so that families could be eligible to buy their fuel at a price they could not afford. There were instances where families needed fuel, but unless their outstanding balance was paid they couldn't get any fuel. Daryl and I decided that we needed to set these people straight and that is what we did.
The Heat Fund is not a formal organization. It is just two people giving out other people's money to people in need. We trust our judgment to do the right thing and we never give money directly to individuals. When a difficult decision needs to be made I call Daryl and we confer. It's that simple.
I only wish that the problems that poverty and high fuel prices have created for our friends and neighbors were that simple to resolve in the long run.
If you want to help us get a head start for next year you can stop in to the Brattleboro Savings and Loan and make a deposit directly to the Heat Fund. If you want a tax deduction make a check out to Guilford Cares and put Heat Fund in the memo section and send it to Richard Davis, 679 Weatherhead Hollow Rd., Guilford, VT 05301.
Richard Davis is a registered nurse and executive director of Vermont Citizens Campaign for Health. He writes from Guilford and welcomes comments at rbdav@comcast.net.
