Asking for the public's help can be difficult.
It can be unfamiliar, intimidating, embarrassing, time consuming, confusing, and overwhelming.
It can be so difficult, in fact, that many Ohioans choose to go without, rather than ask for help and over 400,000 Ohioans are eligible for but do not receive food assistance.
The numbers are staggering.
In Ohio, more than $2.24 billion Federal dollars in tax credits and work support programs go unclaimed by Ohio citizens each year; 57% is unclaimed SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program formally known as Food Stamps) funding. The Ohio Benefit Bank (OBB) strives to assist Ohioans to make it easier to ask for help and access these unclaimed funds.How is it different to ask for the public's help through the OBB?The OBB is user-friendly, counselor-assisted, efficient, empowering, easy to understand, convenient, and proven to be effective.To date, the OBB has potentially returned to Ohioans more than $500 million! This money goes directly to local economies through the OBB by connecting Ohioans with benefits and credits, including:
- Food Assistance (SNAP) Program
- Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)
- Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit
- Free Tax Assistance (available to most Ohio households w/an annual income less than $60,000)
- Health Coverage
- Cash Assistance (Ohio Works First)
- USDA Nutritional Programs
- Ohio Women, Infants and Children (WIC)
- Medicare Rx Extra Help
- Medicare Savings Program
- Senior Community Service Employment Program
- Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
- Golden Buckeye
- Do not let any barriers stand between this assistance and Ohio's families.
Get involved and learn how you can join the network of over 1,100 faith-basedand community organizations in collaborating with the Ohio Benefit Bank.
Get assistance and connected with an Ohio Benefit Bank site in your area to access trained counselors, ready to connect you with the support you need to succeed.
To learn how, contact AmeriCorps VISTA Ohio Benefit Bank Community Organizer, Aaron Bartlett at 330-777-2303 or by email at abartlett@acrfb.org.
To learn more about this public-private partnership between the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks and the State of Ohio, visit the Ohio Benefit Bank at www.ohiobenefits.org.
