Staff report

With outside temperatures dropping, Rowan Helping Ministries is reminding county residents that it has funding available to help them stay warm in their homes.

Rowan Helping Ministries administers the Crisis Intervention Program (CIP) in Rowan County for the N.C. Department of Social Services. Funding from this program is used to help those who have trouble paying for heat or heating their homes during the winter, said Sherry Smith, director of client services for Rowan Helping Ministries.

“This program has specific rules that we must use in distributing the money to Rowan County residents, including that it must be used for a heating crisis,” Smith said.

To qualify for CIP assistance, Rowan County residents:

• Must use funds for the primary heating source in their homes. Funds can be used to pay deposits or reconnect fees for heat, to pay past due heating bills or to pay for repairs to the primary heating source.

• Must bring verification of income from a job or from other income sources — SSI, disability, WorkFirst, pension, etc.

• Must be experiencing a heating crisis, such as receiving from the utility company a notice to disconnect.

“This is an important source of funding and we want to be sure that people who need it know that is available to them if they qualify,” Smith said.

Rowan Helping Ministries has other funds available to help with heat crises or financial emergencies that occur during the winter, Smith said, but that funding is more limited.

Ron Moose, crisis assistance manager, recounted stories of two clients who recently received CIP funding to help with their heating crises.

One involved an 81-year-old woman who received Social Security income and had been living with her sister who had just died. This cut her household income almost in half, Moose said. The client moved into more affordable housing but had to pay a new deposit plus an outstanding bill from the previous address to get electrical service turned on.

“The total owed was more than we could cover through our normal Crisis Assistance Network funding,” Moose said, “but we were able to pay the entire amount with CIP funds.”

In another request for assistance, a young mother with small children asked for help to pay the deposit for electric service in a new residence. The client had moved due to domestic violence.

“We were able to help with CIP funds because these funds cover electric deposits,” Moose said.

Residents must apply in person at Rowan Helping Ministries’ Crisis Assistance Network, 216 N. Long Street. Residents should call the agency at 704-637-6838, ext. 106, before they come in to get an approximate appointment time.

The agency also has a Food Pantry and a Clothing Center to help Rowan County residents who are struggling to make ends meet.