When careful planning is not enough
PROVIDENCE - When Bishop Thomas J. Tobin initiated his ‘Keep The Heat On’ Challenge in October, the rising costs of heating a home and the large number of people whose utilities were already turned off were important factors. Today, heating prices continue to rise and some still are without utility service. Bishop Tobin remains concerned that many more people could become victims of a cold winter and the ever-rising costs.
Beth, 43 and a mother of two children ages 12 and 17, is exactly the type of person he had in mind. Beth works full time and her income allows her to make ends meet. Nothing glamorous, she says, just the basics. Although she works, Beth is eligible for the Low Income Heating Assistance Program grant which helped her be able to heat her home during the past few winters.
She planned for this winter and believed that her family would get through it. Then, she received the bad news. “It was not the cost of heat that got me; it was that my rent went up. Way up,” Beth said. “I can’t complain. I had been there for four years and the rent had never gone up, but I couldn¹t afford to pay what they wanted.” Beth was forced to seek more affordable housing and found a new apartment that was heated with oil. However, after the cost of moving, a security deposit and the first month’s rent, she had nothing left to put oil in the tank. She had already received her LIHEAP grant, but it had been applied to gas heat for her old apartment. She was not eligible for additional assistance.
“I really thought that this is it! I had no idea on how I would get through to my next pay check,” she said. “Then a friend told me to call the diocese and they might be able to help. They came through and we have warmth in our new home.” As of Jan. 5, the fund has raised $74,100.
This article originally published in The Providence Visitor.