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What Worked
Raising the eligibility for CARES status to 200% of the Federal poverty level enabled agencies to help meet the needs of a great many individuals and families, including people who became unemployed and spent their savings but still had bills, and thousands of families who agencies had not served before the pandemic. Southwest Michigan Community Action Agency received CARES funding from the United Way and Berrien Foundation, and those two agencies raised eligibility to 250% of the Federal poverty level, making it possible for the Southwest Michigan Community Action Agency to help even more individuals and families.
Receiving unsolicited and unexpected funds, such as the Consumers Energy Foundation grant, along with donations from individuals and local groups, gave agencies flexibility in helping people with unusual and urgent needs. For example, one agency was able to use United Way funds to help with car payments and insurance, car repairs, and minor housing needs such as repairs to a furnace or the purchase of a new hot water heater. Having few stipulations enabled agencies to implement solutions quickly for issues that didn’t fit a line item, such as replacement of a dying car battery.
Writing the CARES grant request as general as possible worked well when the scope of what agencies would need to respond to was not yet known.
Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency has a fund called Our Greatest Need. Based on its effectiveness, the agency created a similar fund for needs that arose because of COVID for which there were no other sources of help such as diapers, car repairs, and unique needs as they were presented.
Zoom and other virtual platforms, while awkward at first, kept people in touch.
Many agencies distributed extra inventory of goods, such as masks, that they had on hand, which helped get them to residents who had no other sources.
Paying people’s bills for the short term, rather than focusing on more typical long-term solutions, became a way to help those whose short-term needs were substantial.
CARES funding enabled agencies to help with needs for which they had no funding in the past, such as car repairs, and to assist with utility payments, which was especially helpful in the absence of funds from Michigan Energy Assistance Program (MEAP).
Working with community partners every step of the way is always the best way to work, from identifying emerging needs, obtaining scarce personal protective equipment (PPE), or housing homeless families to spreading word of available services and support. And it became critical to fully and efficiently assisting clients during the pandemic.
Having established relationships with grantmaking organizations, including county governments, smoothed the way to quickly obtain grants from those same organizations during the pandemic.
Southwest Michigan Community Action Agency created an efficient All Inclusive Signature Declaration so clients need to sign only one form instead of multiple forms previously required. It is on the agency’s website and people can fill it out and submit it through the website.
Learning to use technology that agencies had but were not utilizing took them out of their comfort zones but enabled them to achieve outcomes and goals despite the pandemic.
Holding workshops virtually made the information available to many more people than when agencies did them in person on nights and weekends.
Intake forms that ask a lot of questions about a family’s situation help caseworkers understand more fully what the family is eligible for so they can be connected to programs that can help them.
Having policies and protocols already in place was important for community action agency staff to be able to effectively respond to rising community needs during the pandemic. Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency formed a crisis response team made up of executive leadership and technology teams. As they started having conversations, more staff were brought in, and over time, they expanded parameters around the team and delegated tasks to others to transition smoothly.
Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency administered staff surveys to gauge such things as how staff felt about returning to the work space. They also did weekly COVID preparedness updates to keep staff informed of what the management team was hearing, how they were going to respond, etc. A yearly employee survey designed to gauge the agency culture and supportiveness drives agency change.
Mid Michigan Community Action created a plan in January 2021 so people for whom the agency prepares taxes could put their tax information online or mail it to the agency. If questions arose, the agency and client talked by phone or virtually to get the tax forms completed.
Many agencies report cross-training staff so they know the breadth of services the agency offers and can better assist clients.
Southwest Michigan Community Action Agency has an event called Stuff a Truck every November, and radio stations cover the agency’s activities all week. In November 2020, the agency’s executive director and one staff person did radio interviews from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. from their cars in the parking lot or from their desks. Listeners were encouraged to donate food or cash and the response was huge. Donors filled five trucks with food and donated $28,000, the most cash Stuff a Truck ever raised.