Financial Fitness Day - Saturday 4/2

Want to get your finances in shape? The Seattle-King County Asset Building Collaborative, with more than two dozen community partners, is proud to present Financial Fitness Day, providing a wide array of FREE services to the public to help them understand, manage, and improve their financial situations. Financial Fitness Day is this Saturday, April 2nd from 10 AM to 3 PM at Rainier Community Center at
4600 38th Avenue, in Seattle.

You can't afford to miss this opportunity to talk to an expert about:
• Credit and Debt
• Financial planning and investment management
• Mortgage and foreclosure
• Bankruptcy and consumer rights
• Tax return preparation and tax credits
• Starting a business
• Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid

At Financial Fitness Day, you will be able to:
• Have your tax return prepared
• Print a free credit report
• Open a bank account — even if you've never had one before
• Create a household budget and develop a plan to reduce your debt
• Apply for public benefits (food, utilities, child care, health insurance)
• Shred financial documents to protect your identity

Services will be provided by experts, including attorneys, financial planners, housing counselors, credit counselors, public health workers, and volunteer tax preparers. Workshops will be offered throughout the day on a variety of financial topics, such as how to adapt to a reduced household income, bankruptcy, ID theft, and other relevant issues.

To register for this event or to find out more information, call 888-864-8623 or visit www.skcabc.org/fitness_fair. Registration is strongly encouraged for those who need childcare or language interpretation.

That’s Financial Fitness Day, this Saturday from 10 to 3 at Rainier Community Center. Please spread the word to your friends, family and networks.

Free Tax Preparation - only 3 weeks left

Hi, I want to remind you how you can get your income tax return prepared and filed for free at any one of 18 United Way sponsored tax sites throughout King County until April 17th, 2011 (only 3 weeks left). In addition to getting help filing your taxes, you may be eligible to receive a refund up to $5,666 from the Earned Income Tax Credit, a refundable tax credit for working people with low and moderate incomes. The free tax preparation service will be prepared by IRS-trained and certified volunteers, and can be electronically filed for a quick refund. Multilingual tax preparers will be available at several sites to serve customers who do not speak English. At the sites you will also be able to sign up for certain public benefits and learn about opportunities you have to make the most of your tax refund by receiving your refund on a debit card or putting a portion of your refund into a U.S. Savings Bond. Free tax prep allows low-income people to keep more of your hard-earned money and avoid paying unnecessary fees for commercial tax preparation and "rapid refund" loans. Being financially stable reduces the risk of becoming homeless. For more information, visit the United Way Free Tax Preparation Campaign webpage To find a location near you, see the United Way Tax Site Locations webpage for a list of sites and their hours and an interactive map. Or simply dial 211 from any phone in King County (this is a free call, even from payphones). Tell the 211 operator that you want information about free tax preparation services.

Three Job Fairs next week

Hi. If you or someone you know are looking for work, I want to let you know about three job fairs next week: The Greenbridge Job and Resource fair on Tuesday the 22nd , the Dice Career Fair, also on Tuesday the 22nd and the Choice Career Fair on Thursday the 24th.

The YWCA Greenbridge Job and Resource Fair is on Tuesday March 22nd from 10 AM to 1 PM at YWCA Greenbridge at 9720 8th Ave SW, in White Center. Employers will include: Port of Seattle, Equity Residential, Safeway, Cares of Washington, Child Care Resources, Victim Support Team at the Seattle Police Department, South Seattle Community College, King County Hazardous Waste Management, Highline School District, Lowes, Airport Jobs, and others. For more information call (206) 336-7000.

Also on Tuesday the 22nd is the DICE career fair from 11 to 3 at the Seattle Sheraton. Top Companies with Technology, Engineering and Security Clearance Job Openings Are Hiring! Meet recruiters and Hiring Managers from: BeyondSoft, Corbis Corp, Goodrich Aerostructures, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, SetFocus, Symetra Financial, and ValueVillage and more companies are expected to be added. That’s from 11AM to 3PM at the Seattle Sheraton Hotel at 1400 Sixth Street in downtown Seattle. Pre-register online at dicecareerfairs.com.

And, on Thursday the 24th is the Choice Career Fair from10:30 to 2 at Seattle Center NorthWest Rooms. Meet face-to-face with the hiring managers from some of the best employers in the greater Seattle area. The recruiters at this event have many job titles they need to fill. That’s at the Seattle Center NorthWest Rooms, next to Key Arena at 1st Ave. N & Republican St. in Seattle. For a list of job titles, maps and a line pass, please go to ChoiceCareerFairs.com.
Job Fairs are a great opportunity to meet one-on-one with recruiters from companies, talk to hiring representatives, fill out job applications, distribute copies of your resume and learn about a wide variety of employment opportunities throughout the area. If you’re looking for work you might want to attend one or all three of these job fairs next Tuesday and Thursday. Good Luck!

Rally to Protect Our Future 3-17

From Egypt to Libya to Wisconsin, we are witnessing real grassroots power as people rise up in support of basic worker and human rights. On Thursday, March 17, it is our turn to make our voices heard as we go to Washington's Capitol and Rally to Protect Our Future. Join the Statewide Poverty Action Network and 2,000 other community members as we demand that our state focuses on raising revenue to end drastic cuts to TANF, Disability Lifeline, healthcare, and other essential services.

The rally will take place on Thursday, March 17th at 12:00 noon on the Capitol Steps in Olympia. Free transportation will leave from Seattle, Kent & Lakewood on the day of the event. For more information or to sign up for a spot on bus, contact Kate at Poverty Action at 206-694-6794. For more information visit povertyaction.org

Also, do you have questions about how the state creates its budget? Are you concerned about the deep budget cuts that have been proposed by lawmakers? Join Poverty Action for the second of our lunchtime phone briefings as Policy Director Tony Lee discusses the biennial budget this Friday, March 11 from 12:00 to 12:45pm. When you RSVP, we’ll send you a call-in number. To sign-up, contact Danielle at 206-694-6794. Thank you!

Worksource Hiring Event & Nationwide Job Fair 3/10

Hi, if you or someone you know is looking for work, I want to let you know about two free job fairs this Thursday, March 10th: The Seattle Worksource Hiring Event at the Downtown Seattle Worksource Office from 10 to 2, and the Nationwide Job Fair at Embassy Suites Hotel in Tukwila from 11 to 2.

The Worksource Hiring Event includes hundreds of positions in: Manufacturing, Transportation & Material Handling, Food Service, Hospitality, Customer Service and more. Featuring: Amtrak, AEROTEK, Charlie’s Produce, Community Health Plan, Key Bank, Port of Seattle, Red Lion Hotel, ResCare Home Care, Safeway, Sterling and more. To attend, call or sign up at the front desk of WorkSource Affiliate Downtown Seattle: (206) 436-8600. Bring your resume, dress professionally and be prepared to speak to company representatives. Thats at the WorkSource Affiliate Downtown Seattle Thursday, March 10th from 10 AM – 2 PM. Located in YWCA Opportunity Place at 2024 3rd Avenue on the 2nd Floor, call (206) 436-8600 for more information.

At The Nationwide Job Fair, you can meet directly with decision makers at top companies and schedule interviews. At this job fair there will be job opportunities in Sales, Customer Service, Clerical, Administrative, Engineering, Finance, Accounting, Government Opportunities, Marketing & Advertising, Business Administration and Management and more. From entry level to professional positions; From Hourly to Salaried positions. The dress code is professional. Bring plenty of resumes. They highly encourage that you register online at www.nationwidejobfairs.com because the resumes submitted online will be viewed by employers attending the job fair prior to the event and in the case they are interested in interviewing you, they will contact you directly. That’s at The Embassy Suites Airport Hotel at 15920 West Valley Highway, in Tukwila this Thursday the 10th from 11 am to 2 pm. For more information call 360-918-8572 or visit www.nationwidejobfairs.com.

Job Fairs are a great opportunity to meet one-on-one with recruiters from companies, talk to hiring representatives, fill out job applications, distribute copies of your resume and learn about a wide variety of employment opportunities throughout the area. If you’re looking for work you should attend one or both of these job fairs on Thursday. Good Luck!

DSHS can’t terminate TANF because of SSI income

Hi. If you (or someone you know) lost your TANF benefits because someone in your household receives SSI and that put you over the TANF income level, the Federal District Court has issued a temporary Order stopping DSHS from terminating benefits for that reason. If you were affected by this change and DSHS has not reinstated your benefits by Friday march 11th, contact your local DSHS office or call the Washington State DSHS toll free line at 877-501-2233 and ask them to reinstate benefits.

Here is a link to the district court ruling:
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B9Bkrad4slsTMWRmY2Y1ZTktMjhkNC00ODkyLWEwYzgtNGE3NWQxZWE5MjIy&hl=en

Free First Thursday: Free Museums This Thursday 3/3

Hi. This Thursday, March 3rd is Free First Thursday, at Seattle Museums. On the first Thursday of every month you can visit museums in Seattle for free including:

• Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture: On the first Thursday of each month, the museum stays open until 8 pm—and admission is free.
• The Museum of Flight: Museum admission is free of charge on the first Thursday evening of every month from 5pm. until 9pm. Note: Airpark exhibits are closed on first Thursday evenings.
• Henry Art Gallery: Free first Thursdays.
• Museum of History and Industry: Free first Thursdays.
• Northwest African-American Museum: Free first & second Thursdays.
• Seattle Art Museum: first Thursdays: Free to all
• Seattle Asian Art Museum: first Thursdays: Free to all
• Wing Luke Asian Museum: General admission is free every first Thursday & third Saturday of the month.

While Thursday this week is Free First Thursday, it's not the only day or only way to visit museums for free. Many museums have other free days too, such as:

• Bellevue Art Museum: Free first Fridays for all, and free for students on the second Wednesday of each month with coupon.
• Frye Art Museum: ALWAYS FREE!
• KidsQuest Childrens Museum: Free Fridays 5-8pm.
• Wing Luke Asian Museum: Free every third Saturday of the month.
• Olympic Sculpture Museum: ALWAYS FREE!
• Seattle Asian Art Museum:Free first Fridays for Seniors 62 and over, and free first Saturday of each month for families.
• Seattle Art Museum: first Friday: Free to seniors (age 62+); second Fridays, 5–9 pm: Free to teens (ages 13–19) with ID
• You can print free passes to the following museums from the King County Library System: Bellevue Arts Museum, Kidsquest Children’s Museum, Museum of History and Industry, and the Washington State History Museum. Search for “museum” in the events calendar, select your date and follow the instructions on the site.
• Pacific Science Center: the first 1,000 guests to enter on the first Monday of the month will be let in FREE

I hope you enjoy local museums for free this Free First Thursday March 3rd and check out some of the other free museum days as well.