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Hello!
Right now, 37 million men, women and children are
living below the poverty line. That’s one out of every
eight Americans. It’s over 10 percent of all families
and nearly 13 million children trapped in poverty.
Our unique mission at ESC is not just to respond to
the immediate needs of the poor while they are in
crisis. Our agency mission is focused on providing the
important assistance our clients need to improve their
situation for the long-term. It is directed at helping
people break the cycle of poverty by providing
programs that help create jobs, improve
living conditions and allow families to find a way out
of poverty. Most important of all, we offer a path to
a better future to many who have been struggling for
years.
I appreciate all the positive response that the first
newsletter brought last month and I hope that it will
help reaffirm the progress we are making at ESC
in breaking this cycle of poverty. It is easy to see
from these articles that we are making a difference in
the lives of our clients everyday. Keep up the great
work!
| Order your ESC staff shirt TODAY!!! |
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We are now taking orders for ESC staff Tshirts! Staff
will be allowed to wear the shirts to work on Friday's
and they are a great way to support and spread our
mission in the community. Cost is only $9 per shirt.
Don't delay... orders and payment must be
received by September 15th!!!
Questions? please
contact Becky Hopper at 417.781.0352 ext. 205 or
by email at rhopper@escswa.org.
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| ESC Client Buys Her First Home! |
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Lisa Bittner, an ESC client, closed on her first home
on Friday, August 11. She was able to save a down-
payment on the home through a combination of two
programs offered by our agency - the Family Self-
Sufficiency program and the Missourian's Building
Assets IDA program.
Lisa, a single mother of three children, entered
subsidized housing during a time of financial
struggles. Wanting to improve her situation she
enrolled in the ESC programs which helped her
accomplish her dream of home ownership.
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| IRS recognizes ESC for VITA program efforts ... |
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The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently
recognized Economic Security Corporation for their
efforts through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
(VITA) program. The VITA program provides free tax
return preparation for low to moderate income
taxpayers, which often includes the elderly, disabled
and Limited English Proficiency (LEP) individuals.
Through the program, ESC staff, along with partners
from Pineville VITA and The Vantage Point, were able
to process 3,560 tax returns in the Fiscal Year 06/
Tax Year 05 season. Refunds to these clients totalled
a staggering $3,011,393. Although some of the
assisted clients owed taxes due to underpayment,
the program provided them with an opportunity to
meet filing requirements without additional tax
preparation fees.
For more information about the VITA program, please
contact Suzanne Becker at 417.451.2206 or
sbecker@escswa.org.
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| Handmade pin sales support Transitional Housing! |
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Lucinda Yates, a self-taught jewelry designer, was
homeless for several years in the early 1980’s. After
getting back onto her feet, she began to
make House Pins® and sold them to boutiques to
raise money for the shelter that helped her during her
struggles.
She began her own business, Designs by
Lucinda, in order to help non-profits create
awareness and
raise funds for homeless programs.
Economic Security Corporation sells these pins
to raise additional funding for our Transitional Housing
Program. The funds raised through sales are used to
provide resources to the clients that are otherwise
unavailable to them. This includes paying for copies
of birth certificates, transportation costs and
purchasing supplies for the apartments.
These pins are available for $13 and no two are alike!
If you would like to purchase one for yourself or as a
gift for someone you love, please contact Carol
Thomas or Tammie Walker (Community Development)
at 781-0352.
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| Do you have news? |
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Is there anything interesting going on in your
department that you would like to share with our
staff, board members and supporters? To have your
information included in an upcoming issue of News
from ESC, please contact Andrea Osiek at
aosiek@escswa.org.
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Kinder Unveils Missouri Senior Report |
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Almost one in five Missourians will be 65 or older by
2020. In an effort to evaluate the needs of this
growing population, Missouri’s Department of Health
and Senior Services (DHSS) recently released the
Missouri Senior Report. It provides relevant data on
Missouri's senior population that previously had never
been compiled into a single document. The report
was unveiled by Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder during a news
conference at the Joplin Senior Center on July 31st,
2006.
"There is going to be an explosion in the percentage
of Americans over the age of 65," Kinder said. "This
report will help us prepare for the needs of our
seniors and guide our decision-making."
The report presents information for each Missouri
county. Its purpose is to evaluate and provide
information about important aging issues including
transportation, economic well-being, crime, health
care access, health status and long-term care.
"The report indicates life is improving for Missouri's
senior adults in four key areas compared to five years
ago," Kinder said. "Our seniors have better access to
health care, more are working, transportation has
improved, and violent crime has declined."
Click here to view the reports for
Jasper,
Barton, Newton and McDonald counties...
Click here to learn more about the report...
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