We at United Way of King County care particularly about making sure people who are low-income are able to build income and avoid paying fees when they don’t need to.  Every year, we run our Free Tax Campaign, which lets people not pay for tax-filing services and also makes sure they maximize their returns.  We also provide a number of services to make sure that people who do get tax refunds don’t need to go to pay-day loan sites to get their check cashed.

Check out the infographic below.  It’s a stark reminder of how easy it is for someone to dig themselves into a financial ditch by relying on certain companies.

A Texas-based nonprofit, Mobile Loaves and Fishes, has created an interesting advertisement: they’ve bought up a billboard where Danny, a local who has been homeless for 15 years, will be “living”.

Danny will be up on the billboard for 2-3 hour stretches, trying to catch the attention of cars passing by.  This is both an awareness campaign and a fundraising campaign, where drivers can text to give $10.

It’s definitely a unique way to raise money and it should be interesting to see how well it does.  You can watch the CNN piece above and a video from Mobile Loaves and Fishes below.

[Discovered via hardlynormal]

We here at United Way of King County are really proud of the work we do in the community and we love it when we can show off some of the cool projects we’re involved in.

Today’s featured project is Downtown Emergency Service Center’s (DESC) Drop-in Center meal program upgrade.  It was funded through our Response for Basic Needs which focuses on supporting and strengthening the organizations that are helping folks during this recession.

With our funding, DESC was able to upgrade a bunch of their equipment so they can serve more people better and more efficiently.  Here’s what they bought:

• A larger refrigerator and a new freezer
  With this equipment, they can hold more food than before.  In the past, a large portion of donated perishables such as bread, meat, and fish had to be declined because they couldn’t be refrigerated.  Now, 50% more food is available for meal prep and food storage has increased by 150%!
  
• A commercial dishwasher
  The dishwasher holds four times as many dishes and runs three times faster than their old dishwasher.  This means quicker and more efficient cleaning!
• A hot water heater
  The Drop-in Center showers used to run out of hot water after six people.  Now 10 – 12 people can enjoy a hot shower!

You can see pictures of all the new equipment in our gallery below.

Seriously, things like this make my day.  It’s a great feeling to help a great organization like DESC make a few no-brainer upgrades that make a huge difference for their client.

[View with PicLens]

To celebrate National Volunteer Week, we’re hosting a volunteer meet up at Marra Farm (9026 4th Ave. S) on Tuesday, April 20th from 4pm – 6pm!  After volunteering, we’ll all head on over to watch the Mariners game that night — tickets are on us!

Marra Farm is located in Seattle’s South Park neighborhood and makes a big contribution to the community.  The farm grows organic produce and ships them out to local food banks.  Last year alone, they grew 16,000 pounds of food that went out to the community.  Marra Farm is local, green, and helps our most vulnerable neighbors.  How could you not support that?

Come out with us to make a difference, meet new people, and watch the Mariners!  Spots are limited, so go to our website and register now!

The other day, we had the honor of having Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn stop by our tax site at the downtown public library.

Mayor McGinn learned more about the awesome work we do, toured the library site, and even volunteered to do some client intake!

We are thrilled that the city and Mayor McGinn supports our free tax campaign.  Thanks to a grant from the city, we are able to file 13,000+ returns that lead to over $17 million worth of refunds in Seattle alone!

So again, a huge thank you to Mayor McGinn for stopping by and helping us provide free tax help for the people of Seattle / King County!

PS: It’s not too late to get your taxes done for free at one of sites!  Visit our website for a list of times and locations!

So this is really awesome news: a recent study has shown that homebuyers who used Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) to purchase their homes not only got better mortgage loan terms but also were two to three times less likely to lose their homes to foreclosure.

For the uninitiated, the IDA program is an innovative savings program that is designed to help low-income individuals save money towards a specific goal and to help them become more finanicially savvy.

The biggest attraction of the program is the match componant — the amount a person saves in their IDA gets matched as much as 3:1.  So for example, someone who is saving for a house can incrementally save $1,000 and at the end of the program, they will have $4,000 to put towards a down payment.   Along with the saving, people with IDAs go through training so they learn more about financial responsibility.

This study is important because it validates the basic premise of the IDA program: that by providing a little incentive and solid financial education, low-income individuals will be more financially stable in the long run.

Study was done by the Corporation for Enterprise Developmentand where they looked at 831 homebuyers who purchased homes using IDAs.  When compared to other low-income homebuyers in the same communities and time, IDA homebuyers received much better loan rates, with only 1.5% having high-interest mortgages compared to 20% in the non-IDA group.  Also, they were two to three times less likely to go into foreclosure.  You can download their full Weathering the Storm report on their website.

We have an IDA program here in King County that is a partnership between us and YMCA.  We’re really excited to see this program get such positive attention!

Is it an unfortunate reality  that hundreds of people a month are losing their homes due to foreclosure and they don’t know where to turn.

If you or someone you are facing foreclosure, you should come to the Free Foreclosure Prevention Event on March 25 from 1pm to 7:30pm at the Hyatt Regenecy in Bellevue (900 Bellevue Way NE).

At this event, you will:

• Have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with your lender or an HUD-approved housing councselor to discuss options to avoid foreclosure.
• Get information and assistance on the Obama Administration’s Making Home Affordable Program.

To take the most advantage of this event, you should bring all necessary mortgage and financial documents.  You can see the full list of documents on HopeNow’s website.

In terms of other logistics, parking is free for the first 3 hours and then $5 for each additional two hours.  The event is being held by HopeNow, a national nonprofit that focuses on home foreclosure.  You can learn all about this event on their website.

Please spread the word to anyone who may need these services!

]]> http://www.uwkcblog.org/2010/03/15/free-foreclosure-prevention-event-march-25th-2010/feed/ 0 http://www.uwkcblog.org/2010/03/08/use-facebook-to-donate-food-for-the-hungry/ http://www.uwkcblog.org/2010/03/08/use-facebook-to-donate-food-for-the-hungry/#comments Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:57:46 +0000 Yuri Kim http://www.uwkcblog.org/?p=2961

The folks at Stamp Out Hunger are getting an early start to their food collecting this year thanks to the help of Campbell’s Soup.  If you join Stamp Out Hunger’s Facebook fan page, Campbell’s will donate 1 can of soup ( up to 1 million pounds!) to Feeding America.

Stamp Out Hunger is one-day event where the postal service collects food left by mailboxes and delivers it to Feeding America.  Last year, they collected a record 73.4 million pounds…

The folks at Stamp Out Hunger are getting an early start to their food collecting this year thanks to the help of Campbell’s Soup.  If you join Stamp Out Hunger’s Facebook fan page, Campbell’s will donate 1 can of soup ( up to 1 million pounds!) to Feeding America.

Stamp Out Hunger is one-day event where the postal service collects food left by mailboxes and delivers it to Feeding America.  Last year, they collected a record 73.4 million pounds of food for the hungry.  It’s a really cool project and we’ll be sure to remind people to participate as the day (May 8th) comes closer.

But for now, join their fan page and make a free donation!

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Did you know that in L.A. County, certain “restaurants” accept food stamps? It is part of their Restaurant Meals Program that has been running since 2005.

For those that don’t know, food stamps (aka EBT) is generally only allowed for food products that must be prepared. So allowing benefits to be used at restaurants is a pretty radical shift in the program’s scope.

I put the word “restaurants” in quotation marks above because the participating restaurants in the program are almost all fast food chains — Domino’s, Jack in the Box, El Pollo Loco, and Subway are the most prevalent participants.

At first glance, I found the program to be pretty ridiculous. Since the only options were unhealthy foods, what good does this program do aside from promoting obesity? However, my opinion changed slightly after I read their FAQ.

The Restaurant Meals Program is only available to the homeless, disabled, and elderly (over 60). For these groups, cooking is difficult if not impossible. So even with food stamps, their options are limited and usually unhealthy. I mean, what can someone experiencing homelessness buy at a grocery store that will be warm and nutritious?

So while eating pizza is not ideal , if it’s the only option for someone to be able to get a hot meal, then I understand.

I still think that some healthier, affordable restaurants need to get on the program but I’m less critical of it now that I know all the facts.

First Lady Michelle Obama is taking on the challenge of childhood obesity through her Let’s Move campaign.

As a result, One of the key issues that she is addressing is “food deserts”, as seen in the video embedded above.  According to Mrs. Obama, they’re going to be investing $400 million a year to eliminate food desserts in America.

Food deserts, as you may know, are areas in low-income communities where healthy, affordable foods are not easily accessible.  This leads to families eating high-fat and unhealthy food because they are cheap and readily available.

Food deserts is an issue we here at United Way of King County have been taking on, as well.  One of our grantees, Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, started the Healthy Corner Store Initiatives which adds fresh fruits and vegetables to corner stores.  You can learn more about that project in the KOMO News clip below.

It’s exciting to see the White House take on such an important cause.  I really look forward to seeing the progress that will be made in helping low-income families eat better!