ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, November 24, 1996 TAG: 9611250183
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Good Neighbors Fund
SOURCE: BETSY BIESENBACH STAFF WRITER
FEW OF LIFE'S ESSENTIALS are getting cheaper, creating more personal emergencies requiring a helping hand.
Dannie McLain's office at Roanoke Area Ministries isn't fancy. In fact, it's not even an office; it's a desk and a few chairs packed into the balcony of a century-old former church building on Campbell Avenue in downtown Roanoke.
It's hard to hear the soft-spoken McLain over the din rising from RAM's day shelter, which occupies the cavernous former sanctuary below. Added to that is the constant pounding of footsteps in the stairwell nearby.
But those who are waiting to see him - mostly women and children - have little to say. They are tired, they are worried, they are needy, and McLain has heard their stories many, many times before.
Many of them are working people, asking for help for the first time in their lives. Others are trying to make ends meet on pensions or government assistance.
They can't pay the gas bill, the electric bill, the rent. Some of them are just hungry and have no money for food. And each year, more and more of them can't afford the medicines their doctors have prescribed for their illnesses.
McLain's job is to screen applicants for RAM's Emergency Financial Assistance program, which provides one-time help for people in need.
Many of them just need a little boost until they find a new job or make other arrangements. Those who need assistance on an ongoing basis are referred to other agencies, said Wendy Moore, RAM's director.
Last year, 2,079 individuals and families received $158,000 in aid. Eleven thousand dollars alone went toward helping with prescription medicines, Moore said.
"The need for health care has skyrocketed," she said. The working poor with no insurance can get help from the Bradley Free Clinic, but for those who have lost their jobs or are on a Medicaid "spend-down" program, there is nowhere else to turn.
Much of the money for the Emergency Financial Assistance program comes from the Good Neighbors Fund, which is sponsored by The Roanoke Times.
Last year, readers sent in $100,900 in donations to the fund. Every penny contributed goes to the needy; none of the money is spent on administrative costs.
Some of the funds are distributed by the Presbyterian Community Center, which is supported by 22 area churches.
Thanksgiving week marks the kickoff of the campaign, and New Year's Day marks the end. But this year, because Thanksgiving is late in the month, Moore and her staff are worried that there will be a drop in donations.
Last year, the fund raised about $1,000 less than it had the previous year, while appeals for help went up.
Even though most of the money is given out $50 to $75 at a time, "we used it up last year," Moore said. The harsh winter brought in more requests for help with utility bills than the agency could handle.
The situation was so bad that 1,000 men, women and children who had never asked RAM for help before came to the day shelter's kitchen for one of the 41,000 free hot lunches it served last year.
Luckily, Moore said, in-kind donations of food were up, partly due to the efforts of people such as the members of Temple Emmanuel, who donated 3,000 pounds of food, and the local Churches of the Brethren, which raised funds to buy a walk-in freezer. For the first time, the agency is able to store large amounts of perishables, Moore said.
Roanoke Area Ministries is a charity "that we support and are committed to," said David Nova, incoming president of RAM's board of directors and a member of Temple Emmanuel.
Board members are drawn from the nearly 200 religious congregations and businesses that support RAM. It is the only charity in the area that is required to have a Jewish board member, Nova said. "It is truly ecumenical."
Although Roanoke will not be affected by the recent welfare reforms until 1998, RAM plans to be "proactive," Moore said.
State and national leaders have asked private charities to take up the slack as government benefits are phased out.
"Roanoke is the most giving community I've ever seen," Moore said, but "we're going to be called on to do more."
The agency recently received a grant that will allow it to help applicants with job skills and placement.
"We want to get things set up," Moore said. "Why wait?"
Checks made payable to the Good Neighbors Fund should be mailed to The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 1951, Roanoke 24008.
Names - but not donation amounts - of contributing businesses, individuals and organizations, as well as memorial and honorific designations, will be listed in the newspaper. Those requesting that their names not be used will remain anonymous. If no preference is stated, the donor's name will be listed.
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