Purpose:

The purpose of the HelpFund is to respond in a coordinated way to the requests for emergency financial assistance of households considered to be at risk of losing their housing.

Area Served:

The CSE HelpFund assists individuals and families in Caledonia County and Southern Essex County, Vermont.

Goals:

• To prevent loss of housing—to assist households to stabilize finances during temporary emergencies.
• To make the process of seeking aid simple, clear and dignified.
• To make the process of granting aid orderly and the use of available funds efficient.
• To provide temporary assistance for access to basic necessities such as fuel and shelter that provide long-term benefits to an individual or family. After exploration of eligibility for state and federal benefits, HelpFund dollars may be used when needed to supplement existing financial assistance or to fulfill a need not addressed by other program funding sources.

Requirements:

Potential recipients must have their cases referred to Community Partners which is a local interagency group that meets once weekly to share information and ideas for how to best use available resources to help individuals and families in our community. Any local service agency or service organization may bring cases to Community Partners.