Emergency Assistance Success Story
Wednesday May 30, 2007, Pensacola
Catholic Charities Emergency Assistance and Community Outreach program is using a new approach to strengthening the community by helping clients learn better ways of handling their finances. The goal was to stifle at least some of the predatory lending some establishments advertise during the tax season. The clients had basic income tax returns completed and filed electronically. In doing so, not only did the EA program offer an alternative to the high cost of Tax Anticipation Loans, but also allowed the clients to keep the complete amount of their refunds. The service was offered free to the public and was held in conjunction with United Way.
The following Emergency Assistance staff and volunteers received awards from the Department of Treasury/Internal Revenue Service for outstanding public service through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program during the 2006 tax season: Lance Bonner, Minni Byrd (vol), Andrew Ford, Tracie Campbell, Eldric Connors, Gwen Crosby (vol), Sandra Harris (vol), Sandra King, Deb Krummer (vol), Steve Scott and John Telhiard (vol).