EDITOR’S NOTE: This is another in a series of articles on the Peninsula Home Fund. The next article will appear on Sunday. It will include a list of the latest donations. Click on the “Home Fund” button at left and print out the coupon to include with your donation.
“I grew up during the Depression,” recalls Betty Barnard.
“I learned both the value of a dollar — and the value of people helping people in need.
“With so much of this world filled with hate, we need to demonstrate how to care.”
Barnard and Lynn Fox are two active volunteers in the Port Angeles office of OlyCAP — Olympic Community Action Programs, the No. 1 emergency care agency in Jefferson and Clallam counties.
They have been trained to provide valuable assistance to folks who need help from the Peninsula Daily News’ “handup, not a handout” Peninsula Home Fund and other community resources.
OlyCAP manages the Peninsula Home Fund for the PDN.
The fund is a safety net for people on the North Olympic Peninsula when they suddenly face an emergency situation and can’t find help elsewhere.
So far in 2006, the Peninsula Home Fund has given “a handup, not a handout” to more than 1,400 families and individuals across Clallam and Jefferson counties.’
Record levels of service in both counties are anticipated as we finish a cold December.
Said Fox:
“Many folks come in needing more than just financial help from the Home Fund, they are needing someone who will take a genuine interest in them.
“Think of a relative who might live in another town and who has fallen into need — and now think of how nice it would be to have someone there with the skill and the resources to help get them on their feet.
“We are those people in this place.”
Drawing upon the Peninsula Home Fund, the two women, along with OlyCAP staff and other volunteers, are able to provide a wide range of assistance to our struggling neighbors — home heating bills, rental assistance, help with prescription costs, car repair, even access to health and dental care.
No administrative charges are deducted from the Peninsula Home Fund by either the Peninsula Daily News or OlyCAP so every penny can be used to help people.
But that means that paid staff must be funded from other money — and that volunteers are essential.
You can help by either sending a contribution to the Home Fund — or by volunteering with OlyCAP (contact phone numbers are listed later in this story).
Lengthy training
Last year, as part of the 2005 Peninsula Home Fund fundraising drive, an appeal was made to the community for volunteers willing to undergo sophisticated training to function as emergency services workers for OlyCAP and the Home Fund.
Barnard and Fox, along with several others, completed months of training and coaching in preparation for helping their neighbors.
“The training was very involved and required learning a sophisticated computer system,” said Fox.
“We studied for a few weeks, and then shadowed professionals to see how it is done.
“After that, we switched rolls and took the lead while they reviewed our work and then, finally, we were on our own.”
The volunteers each work about four hours per week, assisting three to four households.
Both Fox and Barnard will complete more than 200 hours of service this year.
When asked if the job of listening to other people’s woes is emotionally draining, they both quickly said no.
“Actually, you get more than you give.” Barnard said.
“This gives you such a sense of worth, and it gives the client a sense of worth — it’s a two-way street.”
Fox, a retired worker for the Clallam County Road Department, had followed the Home Fund for several years before she read about the call for volunteers.
“I used to get frustrated when people came to the county with a need — and we couldn’t do something about it,” she recalled.
“OlyCAP can meet a wide range of those kinds of needs.
“I decided that volunteering at OlyCAP would be a perfect solution to that frustration.”
`Handup, not a handout’
From Thanksgiving through Dec. 31, the PDN’s Peninsula Home Fund is seeking contributions for its 2006 holiday season fundraising campaign.
From Port Townsend to Forks, from Quilcene and Brinnon to LaPush, the fund is a “handup, not a handout” for children, teens, families and the elderly when there is nowhere else to turn.
Every penny, every dollar, donated goes — without any deductions for administration or overhead — to making life better for children, teens, families and the elderly in Jefferson and Clallam counties.
The fund is used for hot meals for seniors, warm winter coats for kids, home repairs for the low income, needed eyeglasses and prescription drugs, dental work, safe, drug-free temporary housing . . . the list goes on and on.
The Peninsula Home Fund is unique and nonprofit.
* No money is deducted for administration or other overhead.
* All contributions are fully IRS tax-deductible.
* Your personal information is kept confidential. The Peninsula Daily News does not rent, sell, give or otherwise share your address or other information with anyone, or make any other use of it.
* All instances of help are designed to get an individual or family through the crisis — and back on the path to self-sufficiency. That’s the “handup, not a handout” focus of the fund.
* Whenever possible, 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.
Spent by Dec. 31
* Begun in 1989, the fund is supported entirely by Jefferson and Clallam residents.
Individuals, couples, businesses and school groups set a new record for contributions in 2005 — $135,168.75.
As of Nov. 1, $110,943.13 had gone to help 1,439 individuals and families.
All of the money is expected to be spent by Dec. 31.
* Peninsula Home Fund contributions are often used in conjunction with money from churches, service clubs and other donors, enabling OlyCAP to stretch the value of the contribution.
* Money is usually distributed in small amounts, usually up to $150.
* Assistance is limited to one time in a 12-month period.
To apply for a grant from the fund, phone OlyCAP at 360-452-4726 (Clallam County) or 360-385-2571 (Jefferson County).
If you have any questions about the fund, contact John Brewer, Peninsula Daily News editor and publisher, at 360-417-3500; e-mail john.brewer@peninsuladailynews.com.
How to donate
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 you can access by clicking on the “Home Fund” button at left.
Mail both items to Peninsula Home Fund, Peninsula Daily News, P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles 98362.
Again, all contributions are fully IRS tax-deductible.
You will receive a written thank you and acknowledgment of your contribution.
Peninsula Daily News publishes stories every Sunday and Wednesday during the fundraising campaign, listing contributors and reporting on how the fund works.
