Veterans’ Financial Assistance

To see Christ in everyone both weak and strong, to understand their pain and yet still hear God’s song, I asked thee Lord to rise up those in strife, allow me to give a hand and improve their life, help me to guide them, to assist those in need, and in helping each other, your blessing plants a seed.

 Program purpose  Meet single, short-term needs on an emergency basis, such as  Unplanned car repairs  Utility bills  A single rent or mortgage payment  Program does not address long-term financial issues  Based on demonstrated financial need

 Small, specific cash gifts  Emergency basis  Short term need – a single rent or mortgage payment, household utility bill, prescriptions, emergency food and similar expenses  Need arises from sudden and unexpected loss of income  The loss must have occurred within 60 days of the application  Must be used for basic living expenses, not the cable bill

Two forms for this program:  Veteran status and financial situation  Expense category

 Veteran applying to the program must meet basic requirements  The program also is open to the veteran’s spouse on the recent death of an eligible veteran

 The veteran:  Demonstrates honorable discharge status from Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard or Reserves  Must be a resident of a state where the program is operational – currently Florida, Texas and California  May not be on public assistance other than Social Security or disability  Must demonstrate a real financial need

 “Hardship” comes in many forms; TCB Caring Hands can assist only with the most pressing  TCB Caring Hands can address only basic needs, such as:  Rent or mortgage payment  Repairs to the primary vehicle  Preserving electrical or household gas service  Food, prescriptions, children’s needs, etc.

 Unfortunate but ineligible expenses include  Loan or credit card payments  Taxes  Legal or court expenses  Noncritical household utilities – i.e., cable, Internet or cell phone bills  Child support, personal expenditures, etc.

Short Term Breathing Room  Families’ emergency funds can be exhausted quickly  The car dies, but it is necessary to get to work  A missed rent payment can result in homelessness  Paying an unexpected expense leaves no money for food or electricity This program addresses smaller problems for the purpose of heading off or avoiding large ones

Application Requirements Cost Expectations Expansion Progression

 Required documentation:  Complete TCB Caring Hands Financial Assistance application  Copy of Veteran’s DD-214 or Report of Separation from active military service  Copy of marriage license and veteran’s death certificate for widows and widowers  Documentation and demonstration of financial need for item requested  Proof of loss of income or emergency situation  May not apply more than twice in an 18 month period

 Internal staff members  Review applications  Direct veterans to any other, longer term benefits programs  Categorize requests to establish future budgets  TCB Caring Hands will approve requests spanning a wide range of needs  Establish a beginning budget  Implement and execute long range fundraising activities

 Next states: California and Texas  California has more than 2 million veterans  Florida has more than 1.6 million veterans  Texas has more than 1.6 million veterans  Will not be able to serve veterans in states other than Florida, Texas and California without changing initial veteran residence requirement  Likely should follow expansion of TCB Caring Hands’ Homes program

 Particularly in the current economy, temporary funding shortfalls can lead to job loss, health issues, even homelessness  The point is to keep relatively small short- term problems from snowballing into much larger, long-term problems that are far more costly to rectify and more stressful to deal with

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