Do you need assistance? Tips to read first.

If you are new to the social service or charity relief network because of a job layoff, mortgage issues or medical bills, you need to understand it will take a lot of time and effort to research and apply for the resources that can help you and your family.

It’s a crazy maze of rules as to what income levels, number of household members and circumstances can qualify you for specific financial assistance, discounts, grants and donation programs. One family might get help with a past-due utility bill, another will get a Christmas food basket, someone else will qualify for low-cost rental housing.

“There are guidelines and parameters to all of our emergency and reserve funds,” Stephanie Kasprzak, executive director of Monroe County Opportunity Program said March 29 during the Mortgage Solutions: Your Home, Your Family Your Future seminar at Monroe County Community College.

“It’s a system. Navigating it is difficult,” she added.

So don’t give up too early. If one resource isn’t available to your family for whatever reason, there may be another answer somewhere else.

Here are five tips on how to navigate the network:

1. You need official documentation to apply for most financial need-based programs. Can you find birth certificates, marriage licenses, divorce / custody paperwork, military ID cards if applicable, driver’s licenses or state ID cards for everyone in the family? Do you have your tax records for the past two or three years, along with proof of current income such as pay stubs and unemployment award letters? If you are missing a key document, find out what it takes to get a replacement or copy and resolve that problem now.
2. Do not miss any opportunity to save money if you are living paycheck to paycheck. Announcements and news of interest to Monroe County families on a budget are listed in the print and e-editions of The Monroe Evening News, on the MonroeTalks calendar and on the Internet sites and personal finance blogs that are listed in my blogroll. Some events, programs, services and offers have tight deadlines and you need to follow up quickly with a phone call, visit or e-mail if you want to participate. (If you cancel your newspaper subscription or Internet service at home because of struggling finances, then make it a weekly routine to spend an hour or two at any branch of the Monroe County Library System so you can read the papers and use the computer labs to access the latest announcements.)
3. Individual or family circumstances can be more important than how much money you make. The classic example is college scholarship applications, where good grades and community service can help students earn hundreds or thousands of dollars regardless of income. Another example is those of you who are active duty military family members because of a deployment. Those military ID cards give you access to additional resources such as special discounts and family assistance programs. And you may be surprised as to what discounts are available for your family because someone is a college student, auto club member, on a certain health plan, etc.
4. Some programs and resources are open to anyone who requests the service, although there may be time or effort involved. A good example is the Angel Food Ministries bulk food program, which has monthly deliveries in Monroe and Lambertville.
5. Learn from friends, relatives and personal finance experts on how to live frugally within your circumstances. Yes, it’s a worn-out cliche to cut out the daily latte. But charity donors and grant makers do not want their resources to be wasted on expenses they consider to be frivolous things. You can limit or postpone your need for assistance, and will likely get a more sympathetic response when you ask for help, by living a frugal lifestyle as much as possible.

Last updated June 26, 2008.