Sorry for another OT Post (long)

BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that I
didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I don't
have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense to me because
single people have to eat, too. I finally found a woman at the Tennessee
Dept. of Human Services who said what I'd been told was utterly ridiculous.

Now, I *don't* qualify for what is considered welfare (a monthly check)
because TN replaced the old welfare system with something called "Families
First". Obviously this is geared towards people with children. If I were
over 55 there would be an exception, but I'm not. However, I was told I
could certainly apply for food stamps.

I filled out the application and mailed it off. Just got back from my
appointment with my caseworker. At first she told me that because my
parents send me money to pay my bills and I put that money in the bank and
write my own checks, I don't qualify. She said my mother would need to
write the checks directly to the vendor(s) herself. I sighed and said,
"That's not gonna happen. She's 81 years old, no way is she going to sit
down and write out checks to my utilities company, the phone company, etc."
The caseworker said, "I understand, so here's what we're gonna do. Get your
mom to send you a letter simply stating she pays all your bills." Okay, I
can do that.

Then she told me I'll get $150 a month, prorated to the date of my
application which was sent to them on November 2nd, so I'll have $340 for
November and December on my EBT (food stamps) debit card and it will be
mailed out in 3-5 business days. I looked at her. It dawned on me, she'd
approved me for benefits! YAY! Happy Dance!!! After that I'll get $150 a
month credited to the card to use for buying groceries.

As for the letter from my mother, she said just hang onto it. If I still
need the benefits when it comes time for re-certification in April, bring it
with me.

So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some help.
You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working steadily for 25
years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!

jmcquown wrote:
BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that I
didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I
don't have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense to
me because single people have to eat, too. I finally found a woman
at the Tennessee Dept. of Human Services who said what I'd been told
was utterly ridiculous.

Now, I *don't* qualify for what is considered welfare (a monthly
check) because TN replaced the old welfare system with something
called "Families First". Obviously this is geared towards people
with children. If I were over 55 there would be an exception, but
I'm not. However, I was told I could certainly apply for food stamps.

I filled out the application and mailed it off. Just got back from my
appointment with my caseworker. At first she told me that because my
parents send me money to pay my bills and I put that money in the
bank and write my own checks, I don't qualify. She said my mother
would need to write the checks directly to the vendor(s) herself. I
sighed and said, "That's not gonna happen. She's 81 years old, no
way is she going to sit down and write out checks to my utilities
company, the phone company, etc." The caseworker said, "I understand,
so here's what we're gonna do. Get your mom to send you a letter
simply stating she pays all your bills." Okay, I can do that.

Then she told me I'll get $150 a month, prorated to the date of my
application which was sent to them on November 2nd, so I'll have $340
for November and December on my EBT (food stamps) debit card and it
will be mailed out in 3-5 business days. I looked at her. It dawned
on me, she'd approved me for benefits! YAY! Happy Dance!!! After
that I'll get $150 a month credited to the card to use for buying
groceries.

As for the letter from my mother, she said just hang onto it. If I
still need the benefits when it comes time for re-certification in
April, bring it with me.

So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some
help. You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working
steadily for 25 years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once
I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!

That's great news, I'm happy for you. :-) It's a pity it doesn't cover cat
food as well. ;-)
--
Adrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera)
Cats leave pawprints on your heart.
http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk

"jmcquown" wrote in message
...
BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that I
didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I don't
have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense to me because
single people have to eat, too.


I was surprised that America had no welfare provision for single people who
find themselves in difficult circumstances, out of work.
I hope you can find a job soon, Jill. Lots of luck coming over the pond for
your hunt for work.

Tweed

Christina Websell wrote:
"jmcquown" wrote in message
...
BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that
I didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I
don't have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense
to me because single people have to eat, too.

I was surprised that America had no welfare provision for single
people who find themselves in difficult circumstances, out of work.
I hope you can find a job soon, Jill. Lots of luck coming over the
pond for your hunt for work.

Tweed

The problem is the programs are controlled at the state level. There's no
provision for welfare, food stamps or health care which covers the country
like a blanket. It's a great failing as far as I'm concerned.

I applied for 4 jobs of various sorts last Friday. No word yet about an
interview for any of them.

Jill

"jmcquown" wrote in message
...
Christina Websell wrote:
"jmcquown" wrote in message
...
BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that
I didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I
don't have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense
to me because single people have to eat, too.

I was surprised that America had no welfare provision for single
people who find themselves in difficult circumstances, out of work.
I hope you can find a job soon, Jill. Lots of luck coming over the
pond for your hunt for work.

Tweed

The problem is the programs are controlled at the state level. There's no
provision for welfare, food stamps or health care which covers the country
like a blanket. It's a great failing as far as I'm concerned.

I applied for 4 jobs of various sorts last Friday. No word yet about an
interview for any of them.

Jill



Happy dance

You are in my prayers Jill the pack is sending some purrs



Pss I HATE F@CKING LAWYERS even though I have already one of my cases now
just a few more to go and one big one :-(

On Tue, 28 Nov 2006 12:21:25 -0600, "jmcquown"
yodeled:

BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that I
didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I don't
have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense to me because
single people have to eat, too. I finally found a woman at the Tennessee
Dept. of Human Services who said what I'd been told was utterly ridiculous.

Now, I *don't* qualify for what is considered welfare (a monthly check)
because TN replaced the old welfare system with something called "Families
First". Obviously this is geared towards people with children. If I were
over 55 there would be an exception, but I'm not. However, I was told I
could certainly apply for food stamps.

I filled out the application and mailed it off. Just got back from my
appointment with my caseworker. At first she told me that because my
parents send me money to pay my bills and I put that money in the bank and
write my own checks, I don't qualify. She said my mother would need to
write the checks directly to the vendor(s) herself. I sighed and said,
"That's not gonna happen. She's 81 years old, no way is she going to sit
down and write out checks to my utilities company, the phone company, etc."
The caseworker said, "I understand, so here's what we're gonna do. Get your
mom to send you a letter simply stating she pays all your bills." Okay, I
can do that.

Then she told me I'll get $150 a month, prorated to the date of my
application which was sent to them on November 2nd, so I'll have $340 for
November and December on my EBT (food stamps) debit card and it will be
mailed out in 3-5 business days. I looked at her. It dawned on me, she'd
approved me for benefits! YAY! Happy Dance!!! After that I'll get $150 a
month credited to the card to use for buying groceries.

As for the letter from my mother, she said just hang onto it. If I still
need the benefits when it comes time for re-certification in April, bring it
with me.

So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some help.
You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working steadily for 25
years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!


Jill, we are so pleased for you. You more than deserved a break.


Theresa
Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh

Make Levees, Not War

On Tue, 28 Nov 2006 12:21:25 -0600, "jmcquown"
wrote:

BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that I
didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I don't
have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense to me because
single people have to eat, too. I finally found a woman at the Tennessee
Dept. of Human Services who said what I'd been told was utterly ridiculous.

Now, I *don't* qualify for what is considered welfare (a monthly check)
because TN replaced the old welfare system with something called "Families
First". Obviously this is geared towards people with children. If I were
over 55 there would be an exception, but I'm not. However, I was told I
could certainly apply for food stamps.

I filled out the application and mailed it off. Just got back from my
appointment with my caseworker. At first she told me that because my
parents send me money to pay my bills and I put that money in the bank and
write my own checks, I don't qualify. She said my mother would need to
write the checks directly to the vendor(s) herself. I sighed and said,
"That's not gonna happen. She's 81 years old, no way is she going to sit
down and write out checks to my utilities company, the phone company, etc."
The caseworker said, "I understand, so here's what we're gonna do. Get your
mom to send you a letter simply stating she pays all your bills." Okay, I
can do that.

Then she told me I'll get $150 a month, prorated to the date of my
application which was sent to them on November 2nd, so I'll have $340 for
November and December on my EBT (food stamps) debit card and it will be
mailed out in 3-5 business days. I looked at her. It dawned on me, she'd
approved me for benefits! YAY! Happy Dance!!! After that I'll get $150 a
month credited to the card to use for buying groceries.

As for the letter from my mother, she said just hang onto it. If I still
need the benefits when it comes time for re-certification in April, bring it
with me.

So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some help.
You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working steadily for 25
years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!

Congratulations! And you still get to keep your IRA! I didn't. In
Colorado it is considered a resource. So I had to spend mine and
scrimp to make it last until I was old enough to qualify for Old Age
Pension at 60. Although I had friends helping me a bit here and there.
One friend got food from SHARE and gave me some of it that he didn't
like. But once you are a real senior citizen, then it is much easier
to get the government help you need. Like SSD and SSI. Do you have any
medical insurance? Purrs,

--
CATherine

CATherine wrote:
On Tue, 28 Nov 2006 12:21:25 -0600, "jmcquown"
wrote:

BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that
I didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I
don't have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense
to me because single people have to eat, too. I finally found a
woman at the Tennessee Dept. of Human Services who said what I'd
been told was utterly ridiculous.

Now, I *don't* qualify for what is considered welfare (a monthly
check) because TN replaced the old welfare system with something
called "Families First". Obviously this is geared towards people
with children. If I were over 55 there would be an exception, but
I'm not. However, I was told I could certainly apply for food
stamps.

I filled out the application and mailed it off. Just got back from
my appointment with my caseworker. At first she told me that
because my parents send me money to pay my bills and I put that
money in the bank and write my own checks, I don't qualify. She
said my mother would need to write the checks directly to the
vendor(s) herself. I sighed and said, "That's not gonna happen.
She's 81 years old, no way is she going to sit down and write out
checks to my utilities company, the phone company, etc." The
caseworker said, "I understand, so here's what we're gonna do. Get
your mom to send you a letter simply stating she pays all your
bills." Okay, I can do that.

Then she told me I'll get $150 a month, prorated to the date of my
application which was sent to them on November 2nd, so I'll have
$340 for November and December on my EBT (food stamps) debit card
and it will be mailed out in 3-5 business days. I looked at her.
It dawned on me, she'd approved me for benefits! YAY! Happy
Dance!!! After that I'll get $150 a month credited to the card to
use for buying groceries.

As for the letter from my mother, she said just hang onto it. If I
still need the benefits when it comes time for re-certification in
April, bring it with me.

So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some
help. You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working
steadily for 25 years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once
I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!

Congratulations! And you still get to keep your IRA! I didn't. In
Colorado it is considered a resource.

Actually, I didn't really get to keep my IRA. I've been living off of it
with early distributions when I could get help from my parents or John.
It's pretty much depleted.

So I had to spend mine and
scrimp to make it last until I was old enough to qualify for Old Age
Pension at 60. Although I had friends helping me a bit here and there.
One friend got food from SHARE and gave me some of it that he didn't
like. But once you are a real senior citizen, then it is much easier
to get the government help you need. Like SSD and SSI. Do you have any
medical insurance? Purrs,

Unfortunately no, I don't have medical insurance. At one time I had a
policy through USAA (they provide insurance and financial services to
military personnel and their dependents). But it was a temporary policy, 6
months, and when I inquired about renewing it I was told they no longer
offer it.

I'm not eligible for TennCare/Medicaid because I'm not eligible for the
Families First program; that is, I don't have children. There is what they
call the Spend-Down program within Medicaid for "medically needy"
individuals whose medical bills exceed their income. But the state web site
adds this caveat:
" Effective close of business on 4-29-05, only children and pregnant women
may be considered for Medically Needy."

So once again, I lose out because I don't have children. Never mind that
the state has no idea whether or not I could even have *had* children (which
at my age isn't possible). They do their damndest to screw over those who
don't. It ticks me off.

Jill

jmcquown wrote:
BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that I
didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I don't
have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense to me because
single people have to eat, too. I finally found a woman at the Tennessee
Dept. of Human Services who said what I'd been told was utterly ridiculous.

Now, I *don't* qualify for what is considered welfare (a monthly check)
because TN replaced the old welfare system with something called "Families
First". Obviously this is geared towards people with children. If I were
over 55 there would be an exception, but I'm not. However, I was told I
could certainly apply for food stamps.

I filled out the application and mailed it off. Just got back from my
appointment with my caseworker. At first she told me that because my
parents send me money to pay my bills and I put that money in the bank and
write my own checks, I don't qualify. She said my mother would need to
write the checks directly to the vendor(s) herself. I sighed and said,
"That's not gonna happen. She's 81 years old, no way is she going to sit
down and write out checks to my utilities company, the phone company, etc."
The caseworker said, "I understand, so here's what we're gonna do. Get your
mom to send you a letter simply stating she pays all your bills." Okay, I
can do that.

Then she told me I'll get $150 a month, prorated to the date of my
application which was sent to them on November 2nd, so I'll have $340 for
November and December on my EBT (food stamps) debit card and it will be
mailed out in 3-5 business days. I looked at her. It dawned on me, she'd
approved me for benefits! YAY! Happy Dance!!! After that I'll get $150 a
month credited to the card to use for buying groceries.

As for the letter from my mother, she said just hang onto it. If I still
need the benefits when it comes time for re-certification in April, bring it
with me.

So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some help.
You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working steadily for 25
years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!


Big time HaPpY dAnCiNg with you, Miss Persia and Peaches. That should
buy some *really* good kitty food!

--
Sam, closely supervised by Mistletoe

jmcquown wrote:
CATherine wrote:
On Tue, 28 Nov 2006 12:21:25 -0600, "jmcquown"
wrote:

BUT! this one has a happy ending I'd been told for 2 years that
I didn't qualify for any sort of government assistance because (1) I
don't have children and (2) I have an IRA. This didn't make sense
to me because single people have to eat, too.
So finally, after all this long time, I'm actually going to get some
help. You can't imagine how frustrating it's been, after working
steadily for 25 years, to be told I didn't qualify for any help once
I had no income.

Jill ---breathing a HUGE sigh of relief!

Congratulations! And you still get to keep your IRA! I didn't. In
Colorado it is considered a resource.

Actually, I didn't really get to keep my IRA. I've been living off
of it with early distributions when I *COULDN'T* get help from my parents
or John. It's pretty much depleted.

Jill