Keep the Heat On

PROVIDENCE - On Oct. 31, a day before her 40th birthday, Cecelia Jackson received an early birthday present - 100 gallons of fuel oil - courtesy of Bishop Thomas J. Tobin and the bishop’s 2006 “Keep the Heat On” challenge.
Jackson, who spoke to the Visitor via telephone a day prior to the campaign’s kicked off, said she returned to Providence in April after spending 18 months in Orlando, Fla., because she “missed the city and my family living here.” She admits that she didn’t miss the cold Rhode Island winters.

The day Bishop Tobin kicked off “Keep the Heat On” and Jackson was to received the oil delivery was forecasted to be unusually warm for the time of year. But Jackson, who first moved to Rhode Island from New Jersey in
1984 with her dad, knows how warm fall days can quickly turn into frigid winter conditions throughout New England.
Since she’s returned to Providence, living in a three-bedroom apartment on the second floor of a three-tenement house located on Lynch Street, Jackson’s primary focus has been on settling her children in their schools and on finding a job. She’s had no luck with the latter, so far.

Before she left for Florida, Jackson said, she had worked for non-profit agencies in Rhode Island, promoting reading programs and volunteers in reading in schools around the state. Now, she said, “I’ll take any job. I need to work.”
Jackson has two children living at home - Brandi, 16, and James, 8. A third child, Brittany, 20, lives on her own, but still needs a little financial help from her mom once in awhile. Jackson has been unable to help her recently as she’s struggled to pay her own bills.

Several weeks ago, when night time temperatures started to fall and with her fuel tank reading empty, Jackson learned about the Interfaith Community Dire Emergency Fund administered by the Diocese of Providence. Because she had to fill out necessary paperwork to apply for state aid for energy assistance and because the earliest she could expect a delivery was December, Jackson was put in touch with the agency of last resort. She received delivery of 50 gallons of oil.

Jackson hopes the latest delivery of 100 gallons will last until she either finds a job or is put on the list of those requiring fuel assistance from the state.

In the meantime, Jackson’s only income is child support payments which provide for her children. She receives health benefits because she’s diabetic and federal food stamps which help keep food on the table, but she worries that she won’t find employment before the winter cold settles into the region and fuel costs put more strain on her family budget.

The bishop’s donation of 100 gallons of heating oil, is “very much appreciated,” she said. “I am thankful that I was chosen for this honor, that I will get to meet him and thank him in person. What a nice birthday present for me.” The Keep the Heat On campaign is “a gift for all those who will need help staying warm this winter,” she added.

This article originally published in the Providence Visitor.