TANF/Disability Lifeline Cuts. Tell your story to Lawmakers.

Have you been affected by recent budget cuts to TANF or Disability Lifeline? Starting on November 1st, TANF and Disability Lifeline will undergo major changes. People who were receiving financial assistance through the Disability Lifeline - Unemployable program will no longer receive any cash assistance and TANF recipients will have to suffer another devastating cut to benefits. Unbelievably, even more cuts are expected to take place in the near future. Lawmakers need to hear about how these cuts are affecting you and your family! Poverty Action is a non-profit advocacy organization collecting personal stories in order to help lawmakers understand the real life struggles Washingtonians are facing. We cannot afford anymore cuts to vital programs we rely on. Contact Poverty Action to get involved. Share your story and sign up for their statewide SPEAK OUT community summits where you can get your questions answered about the recent changes to TANF and Disability Lifeline and learn how to get in touch with your legislators. Please call 1-866-789-7726 or go to povertyaction.org for more information or to take action.

Bellevue Community Resource Fair 10/28

If you or someone you know is in need of social services like employment, medical, energy, food, etc you might be interested in the Community Resource Fair on Wednesday November 2nd from 4 to 7 pm at Stevenson Elementary in Bellevue. The Community Resource Fair is Open to the community, and over 20 vendors will be there to provide assistance to families with energy assistance, employment, dental, medical information/appointments, after school programs, food assistance, DSHS information, and more…

Participating Agencies include:
YWCA
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Kindering
Bellevue Life Spring
SeaMar
Eastside Heritage Center
Main Stem Music
Washington State Dental Association
Chess 4 Life
Eastside Cultural Navigator Program
YMCA – Y-Tech
WorkSource, Redmond
King County Department of Health
Crossroads Community Center
HeadStart, Stevenson Elementary
Drama Kids
YMCA Youth Programs
Health Point
And more…

Registration is not required and all ages are welcome. That’s the Community Resource Fair on Wednesday, November 2nd, from 4-7pm At Stevenson Elementary in the School Gym at 14220 NE 8th Street in Bellevue. For more information contact Cecilia Martinez-Vasquez, 425-456-6040, martinezc@bsd405.org

Free Flu Vaccination 10/22

Keep yourself, family and friends healthy this winter. Get your free flu vaccine! King County Public Health is hosting a free flu vaccine clinic this Saturday, Oct. 22 at the Tukwila Community Center from 10am to 1pm. Flu vaccines are the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones from flu.

Influenza spreads readily from person to person in schools, workplaces and homes. Everyone over 6 months of age should get the annual flu vaccine to prevent sickness, unnecessary healthcare visits, hospitalizations and deaths from influenza.

This year, a single flu vaccine provides protection against the H1N1 flu that caused outbreaks last year and 2 other flu viruses that are expected to cause illness this season. Protection lasts throughout the flu season. Limited doses of infant and preservative-free vaccine available. Interpreters available

Flu vaccine is good for people 6 months and older—especially children, pregnant women, the elderly and people with health problems like diabetes and heart disease. You will not be asked for proof of health insurance or citizenship. To save time at registration, download registration forms online at: kingcounty.gov/health/flu. And please share the vaccination clinic flyer.

That’s this Saturday, October 22 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Tukwila Community Center, 12424 42nd Avenue South, in Tukwila. Bus route 150, 154, and 161.

Stay healthy.

Disability Lifeline Ends 11/1, New Housing & Essential Needs Program

Hi. Do you or someone you know receive Disability Lifeline or DL benefits, formerly know as GAU or GAX? As part of the most recent legislative session, the Washington State Legislature ended the Disability Lifeline (DL-U) cash grant. This means that as of November 1st people who were receiving financial assistance through the Disability Lifeline - Unemployable program will no longer receive any money. People will still receive medical care through a program called Medical Care Services (MCS). (People receiving DL-X will be transferred to the new ABD program, with no changes in their benefits.)

Starting in November, people enrolled in the Medical Care Services program will be eligible to receive rent and utility assistance through a new program called Housing and Essential Needs or HEN. Catholic Community Services is working in collaboration with King County and DSHS to distribute this money.
For more information, please contact Catholic Community Services HEN operators at 206-328-5755, or visit henkingcounty.org for detailed information about the program.