Dear Friend,
The holiday season is upon us, and we know you must be wondering how to sift through the many appeals from worthy organizations asking for your support and choose those nearest to your heart. As you consider your gifts, Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA) would like you to know about the impact that the generosity of so many people like you has had on some of our most vulnerable neighbors, such as:
* the young, single mother doing her best to care for her children while upgrading her employment skills through SEVCA’s “Ready for Work” program so that she will be able to get a decent job;
* the family who would have become homeless if not for the assistance SEVCA’s housing case manager provided to help pay their back rent and create and stick to a sustainable budget so they could afford to remain in their home;
* the elderly man in poor health who was freezing cold each winter in his mobile home before SEVCA weatherized it;
* the middle-aged couple, in a financial crisis due to a recent job loss, who found themselves unable to afford their next heating fuel delivery and turned to SEVCA’s Crisis Fuel program to stay warm;
* the families displaced by the recent fire at an affordable housing development in Brattleboro, who are being helped by SEVCA to meet their basic needs, secure alternative housing, and acquire essential personal and household items to help them begin again.
Families and individuals who are struggling financially come to us with their own unique histories, circumstances, and stories to tell. We listen, empathize, assess, and determine the support needed to get them back on their feet and moving forward with their lives.
To help them, SEVCA offers a comprehensive array of programs and initiatives developed over the course ofour 50-year history and continually adapted to meet local needs. Crisis fuel assistance, housing assistance and homelessness prevention, home repair, weatherization, early childhood education, financial fitness education, budget counseling, small business counseling, job readiness training, matched savings accounts, income tax preparation, and emergency clothing and furniture are some of our key services.
We can provide these critical services to the thousands of Windham and Windsor County residents who fall on hard times each year because you and others like you are willing to provide the resources needed for us to respond quickly, effectively, and compassionately.
CLICK HERE to read just a few of the many true stories of determination, caring, and hope that are made possible by SEVCA’s supporters. We hope they help you understand how your donation directly benefits your neighbors, and we urge you to give what you can to help us maintain a strong safety net for those who need it the most.
Your support is especially important because, unlike many of our other funding sources, it provides us with the flexibility to respond to whatever our clients’ specific needs are, from resolving all types of immediate crises to developing innovative solutions that help people stabilize their lives and move toward self-reliance. Please DONATE HERE today.
Thank you for your generosity.
Sincerely,
Steve Geller, Amanda Rundle,
Executive Director Board President
