Check out Connecticut's latest Community Action news! Did you hear about something that we haven't yet? Send your story ideas to kelley@cafca.org.
Remember to "Like" CAFCA at www.facebook.com/ctcommunityaction and follow CAFCA at www.twitter.com/cafca_inc!
Last fall, the federal government made drastic cuts to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps needy families obtain heat at little or no cost. Many families are at risk of simply running out of fuel.
Waterbury, Conn.- New Opportunities' Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program is set to kickoff on Saturday, January 28th and run through April 4th at New Opportunities' Waterbury and Meriden locations.
If the federal government proceeds with its plan to cut funding nearly in half for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, residents accustomed to receiving heating aid will see their benefits reduced more sharply than any time in recent memory. Once the reduced benefits run out, for many households, so will the heat.
New Opportunities, Inc. through the Money Management program will assist local seniors with check book balancing, monthly bill paying, mail sorting and other financial activities that help the, remain safe and comfortable in their own homes, using local volunteers as "bill payers".
New Opportunities recently launched AniMeals with partner organization Animals for Life after a similar program met with success in Danbury. Every other Tuesday, along with their regular food delivery, recipients receive enough pet food for two weeks. Gill said about 26 pet owners have signed up for the program, which provides meals for about 46 dogs and cats.
On July 20th, New Opportunities rolled out a pet food delivery program to the Greater Waterbury area that compliments the agencies Meals On Wheels program. The program, known as Animeals, delivers pet food in conjunction with Meals On Wheels meals for clients who have dogs or cats.
Francine J. Nido of New Opportunities has been selected as the recipient of the 17th Annual Malcolm Baldrige Volunteer Award presented by the Waterbury Regional Chamber of Commerce. A formal award ceremony will be held on Tuesday, September 20th at the Aqua Turf Club in Plantsville.
More than 1,000 lunches are handed out to city children every day through the New Opportunities summer food service program. There are 22 locations that hand out the nutritious meals, as well as one in Wallingford.
One June 24th New Opportunities announced the winners of their 2011 Afro-Latin-Indian scholarships, Patricia Mayfield Memorial Scholarship and the Meriden Black Expo scholarship. In total, New Opportunities awarded over $27,000 in scholarships for local students.
In Connecticut, EPA is providing Brownfields grants to the following municipalities and groups: • New Opportunities Economic Development Corp., Waterbury, $600,000 (3 cleanup grants, Cherry Street parcels) • Police Activity League of Waterbury, Inc., Waterbury, $400,000 (2 cleanup grants, Division Street parcels) • City of Stratford, $400,000 (community-wide assessment grant) • Valley Council of Governments, $500,000 (community-wide revolving loan fund supplemental funding)
