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LCCAA, United Way’s UCAN partner to assist Seniors with Water
Bills
Nov. 4, 2020: The risk for severe illness from COVID-19
increases with age, with older adults at highest risk.
Older adults are advised to take additional precautions with social
distancing and maintaining good handwashing and hygiene
practices. Lorain County Community Action and the
United Way of Greater Lorain County are partnering to assist
low-income seniors to maintain the water service they need to
stay safe.
Many of Lorain
County’s 17,419 low-income seniors are struggling to pay their
bills, said LCCAA President and CEO Jackie Boehnlein.
“Low-income seniors tend to restrict their water usage to keep
their bills low,” she said. “Many, especially those on fixed
incomes, are getting slammed with higher expenses as they
shelter at home. Through no fault of their own, many are behind
on their water and sewer bills.”
Help began
November 9 with LCCAA directing $100,000 of Ohio’s recently
announced Home Relief Grant to United Way’s United Community
Assistance Network (UCAN), which was designed specifically to
assist seniors with past due water and sewer charges. The
assistance network was established in 2014 and serves all ZIP
codes in Lorain County.
“Many times
our seniors do not reach out for help because they are not sure
who they can trust,” Boehnlein said. “All of the applications
taken through the UCANAPPLY.ORG site go directly through United
Way.”
Seniors aged
65 and older living at or below 200% of the federal poverty
level are eligible for this assistance. “We expect to take
somewhere between 150 to 200 applications from seniors all over
the county before this funding expires on December 30,” said
Ryan Aroney, United Way President and CEO. “This funding allows
us to help with any water or sewer charges incurred since April
1 without a cap on the amount of assistance.”
Eligibility requirements:
-
Must be behind on payments or be without water service,
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Must live at or below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty
Level ($25,520 for a family of one and $34,480 for a family
of two in 2020),
-
Must have been directly affected by COVID-19 or be a member
of a population especially vulnerable to COVID-19.
UCAN partners include:
·
Catholic Charities
·
Salvation Army Lorain
·
Salvation Army Elyria
·
Lorain County Office on Aging
·
Neighborhood Alliance
·
North Ridgeville Community Care
·
Community Resource Services of Avon/Avon Lake
·
Oberlin Community Services
Seniors are
encouraged to let a UCAN partner know they have past due
balances or to apply starting November 9 at UCANAPPLY.ORG.
Additional information can be found at
www.lccaa.net. Look for Home
Relief Grant under the Programs menu.
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