ASSIST Agency, Inc.

Mission

Statement

The mission of the ASSIST Agency is to

raise the standard of living and improve

the quality of life for economically

challenged individuals, families, and communities in

southwestern Louisiana.

October 1, 2018 Volume 8, Issue 1

Inside this issue:

Toys for Tots 1

Free Tax Preparation 2

Success Stories 3

Editor’s Corner 4

11 N. Parkerson Ave

P O Box 1404

Crowley, La. 70527

337-788-7550 x138

Fax 337-783-9353

www.assistagency.org

Helping People . . .

Changing Lives

SNAP printout with

each child and the

complete Social Securi-

ty number listed must

accompany the appli-

cation.

Applicants must live in

the parish in which

they apply. Applica-

tions are available be-

ginning October 20,

2018 from 8:30 am –

4:00 pm Monday

through Friday at the

ASSIST Agency Offices:

Crowley - 11 North

Parkerson Ave, 337-

788-7550 x 138

Jennings—107 E

Nezpique, 337-824-

7800

The ASSIST Agency ,

in partnership with

the US Marines, will

be taking applications

for the 2018 Toys for

Tots Program. Appli-

cants must reside in

Acadia, Jeff Davis or

Vermilion Parish.

Children up to 12

years old and special

needs children who

are over 12 years old

will be considered to

receive Toys for Tots.

Proof of need and

identification is re-

quired. Parent’s pho-

to ID and the Social

Security card and

Medicaid card for

each child or the

Abbeville—407 Char-

ity St., 337-898-9554

Deadline for turning

in completed applica-

tions with all neces-

sary documentation

is November 14,

2018 at 3:00 pm.

Late or incomplete

applications will not

be considered. We

do not accept faxed,

mailed, or emailed

applications.

Only one application

per family is al-

lowed. Applying for

Toys-for-Tots at mul-

tiple locations will

result in being dis-

qualified for toys for

this year.

Page 2 ASSIST Agency, Inc.

Do not

save

what is

left

after

spend-

ing, but

spend

what is

left

after

saving.

-Warren

Buffet

FREE TAX PREP our site, we try to educate

them about asset building.

We encourage these fami-

lies, who often do not

have the simplest of finan-

cial strategies in place, to

use a portion of their tax

refund to begin saving.

Rather than provide a

safety net and government

assistance to sustain fami-

lies while in poverty, our

approach is to focus on

the ability to accumulate

assets and move people

out of poverty to self-

sufficiency.

A special program is

offered to people who live

in Acadia, Jeff Davis or Ver-

milion Parishes, file re-

turns with the ASSIST

Agency and receive a re-

fund, including an EITC re-

fund. The United Way of

Acadiana (UWA) and the

United Way of Southwest

Louisiana (UWSWLA) may

make available Incentiv-

ized Savings Programs in

which all or part of your

refund is put into savings

account with a specific

goal for which your are

saving. By adding to the

savings account during the

The ASSIST Agency part-

ners with the United Way

of Acadiana, the United

Way of Southwest Louisi-

ana, and the Internal

Revenue Service to pro-

vide free tax preparation

for low income individu-

als during the 2017 tax

filing season. Since 1970,

IRS’s Volunteer Income

Tax Assistance (VITA)

Program has helped mil-

lions of individuals fulfill

their tax obligations. In

preparation for this pro-

gram, the ASSIST employ-

ees received training on

Earned Income Tax Credit

(EITC) and other tax ben-

efits that are available.

The EITC is a refundable

income tax credit for low

-income working individ-

uals and families to offset

the burden of Social Se-

curity taxes and to pro-

vide an incentive to

work. When the EITC ex-

ceeds the amount of tax-

es owed, it results in a

tax refund to those who

claim and qualify for the

credit.

When an individual quali-

fies for a tax refund at

year and following other

requirements of the pro-

gram, the UWA (in Aca-

dia and Vermilion Parish-

es) or the UWSWLA (in

Jeff Davis Parish) will

provide a match of 50%

of your savings, up to

$2000! So if you save the

minimum of $1500 you

will receive $750 at the

end of the program year.

Or save $4000 and re-

ceive $2000 at the end

of the program year.

For more info on the In-

centivized Savings Pro-

gram you can watch a

video at https://

www.youtube.com/

watch?v=bwQUzgbF7hs

Free tax preparation be-

gins in January as soon

as the IRS is ready to ac-

cept returns.

Please call the office in

your parish to schedule

your appointment after

January 15, 2019:

Acadia: 337-788-7550 x

138

Jeff Davis: 337-824-7800

Vermilion: 337-898-9554

Page 3 ASSIST Agency, Inc.

Success is not final,

failure is not

fatal: it is the

courage to

continue that

counts. -Winston

Churchill

ment and began

class in the Fall Se-

mester. He is very

grateful and really

likes the course.

April

April is a 58 year old

woman who has

been homeless for

over 3 years. She

came to the ASSIST

Shelter during the

flood in August

2016. Outreach

workers found her

on the steps of a

public building in

the rain and called

our shelter. She

stayed at the ASSIST

Shelter for three

months and then

moved to a long

term transitional

Kurt

Kurt is a 49-year-

old male who has

never worked in

his lifetime. He

has decided to go

to SLCC to become

a certified welder.

He received a

grant to cover his

tuition, but was

lacking the money

for the equipment

required for the

course. He was re-

ferred to ASSIST by

SLCC for the IDA

scholarship pro-

gram through the

United Way of Aca-

diana. We worked

with Ken providing

financial education

along with the

scholarship. He

was able to pur-

chase his equip-

shelter where she

could be until she

was awarded so-

cial security bene-

fits. At the end of

her term there,

she return to the

ASSIST Shelter.

She began work-

ing for a program

that employs sen-

ior workers. With

this income she

could begin to

look for housing.

She applied for

and received a

Housing Choice

Voucher. She

moved into her

new permanent

housing and has

remained stably

housed. She en-

joys her new

home and contin-

ues to work.

SUCCESS STORIES

Page 4 ASSIST Agency, Inc. Board of Directors Mr. Anthony Candler President Jeff Davis Parish

Mr. Aidan Broussard Vice President, Vermilion Parish

Mrs. Katie Jolivette Treasurer, Acadia Parish Mrs. Curtrese Minix, Secretary, Acadia Parish Mr. Mike Kloesel Parliamentarian, Vermilion Parish Mrs. Glenda Woods Chaplain Jefferson Davis Parish

Mr. Alton Allen Member, Acadia Parish Mr. Calvin Broussard, Jr. Member, Vermilion Parish Mr. Robert Dominick Member, Acadia Parish Mrs. Dianne Granger, Member, Acadia Parish

Dr. Jack Gupta Member, Vermilion Parish Ms Shari Hebert Member, Vermilion Parish

Mrs. Peggy Keys Member, Jefferson Davis Parish Mrs. Harriet Lawdins Member, Jefferson Davis Parish Mrs. Angela Lehman Member, Jefferson Davis Parish Mr. Christopher Mayfield Member, Acadia Parish Mr. David Trahan Member, Vermilion Parish

Editor’s Corner: Note: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily re-flect the views of the ASSIST Agency or any of its other staff. T he views expressed here are that of the Editor only.

Voting is a sacred duty of each citizen. It matters not what party you are affiliated with - It matters that you do vote. I en-courage everyone who meets criteria to register to vote. The upcoming Fall elec-tions in Louisiana take place on November 6,

2018. Registrations will be accepted 20 days prior to an election if register-ing through the Louisiana Secretary of State’s GeauxVote.com online Registration System or 30 days prior to an election if registering in person or by mail registration to be eli-gible to vote in that partic-ular election. The Secretary’s website, voterportal.sos.la.gov, has all the information you need to get ready to vote. A sample ballot tailored for you can be download-ed. You can also check this page for election re-sults. There will be constitution-al amendments on the No-vember ballot also. PAR

Louisiana is an independ-ent voice offering solutions to crucial issues for the betterment of our state through accurate, objective research and focusing pub-lic attention on those solu-tions. They offer explana-tions of each amendment and what voting for or against each one will mean so you can make an in-formed choice. The web-site is www.parlouisiana.org. Please take time to regis-ter, become informed on the issues, and go vote. We welcome your com-ments on this article. Con-tact Edna Semar, editor: assistshelter

@assist.glacoxmail.com

The Jeff Davis Parish office is located at 107 E. Nezpique St., Jennings, La. Ms. Car-la Billups is available to assist you in Jeff Davis Parish. Office hours are 8:00 am—4:30 pm, Monday through Friday. For an appointment for assistance please call 337-824-7800.

Located at 407 Charity Street, Abbeville, La., the Vermilion Parish office of the ASSIST Agency is open from 8:00 am—4:30 pm, Monday through Friday. Ms. Ker-cia Huntly and Ms. Kellie Rankin are able to assist you. For an appointment for as-sistance please call 337-898-9554.

The Acadia Parish office of the ASSIST Agency is open from 8:00 am—4:30 pm, Monday through Friday and is located at 11 N Parkerson Ave., Crowley, La. Mrs. Linda Alcock and Mrs. Crystal Caillet will be available to assist you in Acadia Parish. For an appointment please call 337-788-7550, ext. 138.

ASSIST AGENCY OUTREACH OFFICES