A grandmother caring for two small children received help with her utility bills.
An out-of-work logger in Quilcene got money to obtain prescribed medicine.
A fourth-grade student got the glasses he needed to do his school work in Port Townsend.
Material was provided to help a volunteer group assist a Port Angeles woman with repairs to her mobile home.
A Forks woman received a load of wood to heat her house.
Using the money donated in 2009, more than 1,800 households in Jefferson and Clallam counties received $187,000 in help so far this year from the Peninsula Daily News’ Peninsula Home Fund.
From Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve, the Peninsula Home Fund — a safety net for North Olympic Peninsula residents when there is nowhere else to turn — is seeking contributions for its annual holiday season fundraising campaign.
Beginning Sunday, Peninsula Daily News will publish stories every Wednesday and Sunday during the campaign listing contributors and reporting on how the fund works.
The Peninsula Home Fund is a unique nonprofit program:
• No money — not one penny — is deducted for administration fees or any other overhead; 100 percent goes to our neighbors in need.
But this is not a welfare program.
Money is used to give families and individuals in Jefferson and Clallam counties “a hand up, not a handout” to get through an emergency situation.
Assistance, which usually averages less than $100, is also limited to one time in a 12-month period.
• All contributions are IRS tax-deductible for the year in which the check is written.
• Your personal information is kept confidential.
The PDN does not rent, sell, give or otherwise share your address or other information with anyone or make any other use of it.
• Every dollar contributed to the Peninsula Home Fund goes to making life better for children, teens, families and the elderly across the North Olympic Peninsula — from Port Townsend to Forks, from Quilcene and Brinnon to Sequim, Joyce and LaPush.
The fund is used for hot meals for Jefferson and Clallam County seniors; warm winter coats for kids; home repairs for a low-income family; needed prescription drugs; dental work; safe, drug-free temporary housing; eyeglasses — the list goes on and on.
All instances of help are designed to get an individual or family through a crisis — and back on the path to self-sufficiency
Money is usually distributed in small amounts, usually not more than $150.
The average amount of help this year was about $85 per family, with no more than one grant from the fund within 12 months.
The fund is managed for the Peninsula Daily News by OlyCAP — nonprofit Olympic Community Action Programs — the No. 1 emergency care agency on the North Olympic Peninsula.
Home Fund case managers work with each individual or family to develop a plan to become financially stable — and avoid a recurrence of the emergency that prompted aid from the fund.
As needed, Peninsula Home Fund contributions are used in conjunction with money from churches, service clubs and other donors, enabling OlyCAP to stretch the value of the contribution.
The goal again: “a hand up, not a handout.”
Now in its 21st year, the fund is supported entirely by Jefferson and Clallam residents.
Individuals, couples, businesses, churches, organizations and school groups set a new record for contributions in 2009 — $230,806.95.
All of that money is expected to be spent before Dec. 31.
To apply for a Peninsula Home Fund grant, phone OlyCAP at 360-452-4726 (Clallam County) or 360-385-2571 (Jefferson County).
OlyCAP’s Port Angeles office is at 228 W. First St., Suite J (Armory Square Mall); 360-452-4726.
Its Port Townsend office is at 803 W. Park Ave.; 360-385-2571.
The Forks/West End office is at 91 Maple Ave.; 360-374-6193.
OlyCAP’s Web site: www.olycap.org; e-mail: action@olycap.org.
Tim L. Hockett, OlyCAP’s executive director, oversees disbursements from the Peninsula Home Fund.
The fund started in 1989 with $2,000 in contributions and has grown every year.
From children’s pennies to checks for thousands of dollars, the generosity of Peninsula Daily News readers makes a positive difference.
A gift of any size is welcome.
The Peninsula Home Fund has never been a campaign of heavy hitters.
If you can contribute only a few dollars, please don’t hesitate because you think it won’t make a difference.
Every gift makes a difference, regardless of its size.
To donate, write a check to “Peninsula Home Fund” and attach it to the coupon that accompanies this story.
Mail both items to Peninsula Home Fund, Peninsula Daily News, P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362.
Or drop them at the newspaper’s offices in Port Townsend, Sequim or Port Angeles (their addresses are on Page A2 of the PDN every day).
You can also contribute online using a credit card — just click on the Home Fund donation button at www.peninsuladailynews.com.
Again, all contributions are fully IRS tax-deductible.
You will receive a written thank-you and acknowledgment of your contribution.
If you have any questions about the fund, phone John Brewer, Peninsula Daily News editor and publisher, at 360-417-3500.
Or e-mail john.brewer@peninsuladailynews.com.
