THURSDAY, MARCH 12, 2009

Recovery Corps' HEF program off to successful start

BATON ROUGE, La. -- The Louisiana Family Recovery Corps’ Household Establishment Funds (HEF) program has completed a successful launch in St. Helena, Tangipahoa, and Washington parishes.

In just more than three days, the program has already reached its client capacity. Potential clients were prescreened telephonically and more than 1,100 cleared the initial eligibility process. Those clients will begin meeting with Recovery Corps case managers on Monday, March 16, to determine specific benefits each client will receive.

The HEF program provides one-time assistance for families attempting to re-establish or maintain their household as part of their recovery process from hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Eligible households will receive up to $1,500 in benefits that include rent payments and deposits, utility payments and deposits, and household furnishings such as beds, washing machines, dryers, refrigerators, and stoves.

“We are very pleased with the progress of the program and have had great feedback from those who we have served thus far,” said Dr. Monteic A. Sizer, President and CEO of the Recovery Corps. “Our partners have done a great job and we are excited about moving on to the next phase and actually beginning to distribute these benefits to our clients.”

As has been the case during prior iterations of the HEF program and other direct assistance, outcome-based programs offered by the Recovery Corps, the need has proven to be much greater than the resources available. The Recovery Corps has allocated more than $1.5 million to the three-parish area, though the tremendous volume of callers attempting to receive HEF assistance evidences the yet unmet needs of our citizens.

“Many of our residents are still in need of direct assistance,” Sizer said. “We are calling for additional resources to be provided for direct assistance to the people of Louisiana who have been impacted by the hurricanes. Our experience and research shows that these are not chronic social service seekers, but rather working Louisiana families who just need an opportunity to help further their recovery process.

“Should this type of assistance not be provided and our impacted citizens continue to be unable to access Road Home funds or other governmental assistance, this temporary financial pinch they are feeling will force a short-term impoverished situation to develop into a more permanent one. We certainly cannot afford for this to happen, especially with the tenuous condition of our state and national economy.”

ABOUT THE RECOVERY CORPS
The Louisiana Family Recovery Corps is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation based in Baton Rouge, La., and formed in the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. The Recovery Corps’ mission is to facilitate human recovery for the State of Louisiana in the aftermath of disaster, both natural and man-made. The Recovery Corps has partnered with human service and non-profit organizations throughout the state and the country to deliver assistance as effectively and efficiently as possible, allocating more than $80 million to recovery efforts and assisting more than 30,000 households since January 2006.