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CRISIS SERVICES
Community Services Department
Letha Dunn, Director
The Community Services Department of MCCSA complies with the
Results Oriented Management and Accountability (ROMA)
requirement by implementing a customer tracking system in
the nine county MCCSA service areas, designed to enact the
most effective means of providing case management services
to clients. The case management staff works with family
clientele by taking necessary actions to resolve problems
associated with socioeconomic disparities. Albeit all such
“gaps” can not be mended; regarding every possible solution,
the case management staff attempts to link clientele with
economic relief sources. The target population for case
management is consistent of critical need individuals who
are under served or dependent upon government welfare
programs. Being MCCSA's largest Department, The Community
Services Department aids in the crisis, senior, and
self-sufficiency programs via CSBG, LIHEAP, and WX.
Community Service Block Grant
The Community Service Block Grant Act of 1981 (CSBG)
authorizes the specific services administered through this
federal block grant program, which is the cornerstone of
family based services offered by MCCSA. Through case
management, CSBG assists in solving real-life problems by
enabling families to attain self-sufficiency. By addressing
problems in the areas of employment, education, health,
housing, nutrition, and income management the program serves
a broad segment of the MCCSA target population ranging from
adolescents to the elderly.
Emergency Food and Shelter
Letha Dunn, Director
The Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EF&S) is a federal
program, which provides food and/or shelter assistance to
low-income families during a crisis situation in the
agency's outlying counties. EF&S is a supplemental food and
shelter assistance program that is designed to work in
combination with other assistance programs in efforts to
maximize and target limited resources.
South Harbor Shelter
Linda Grace-Jones, Shelter Manager
The South Harbor Shelter provides temporary housing to those
in need. Basic services include provisions for personal
hygiene, meal rations, non-traditional services encompassing
employment training and case management, GED assistance,
substance abuse counseling and treatment, domestic violence
assistance, medical aid, and travelers aid. The shelter also
provides emergency food boxes to low-income families in
Lauderdale county. The distribution of food is made
available through the United States Department of
Agriculture and the Mississippi Food Network.
SENIOR CARE SERVICES
Meals on Wheels (MOW)
Mary A. Brooks, Director
Funded by the East Central Planning and Development District
and the United Way of Lauderdale County, Meals on Wheels
provides daily nutritionally well-balanced meals to the
elderly and/or disabled homebound individuals in order to
assist them in leading independent, meaningful, and
dignified lives in their own homes and community. The Meals
on Wheels program relies heavily on its volunteers to
deliver daily hot meals to elderly and handicapped homebound
individuals.
To qualify, applicants must
:
* Be 60 years of age or older and/or disabled
* Be homebound
* Have great economic or social needs
Foster Grandparents Program
Carlotta Downing, Director
The Foster Grandparent Program (FGP) provides older
individuals with the opportunity to give individual
attention to children with special needs. This special care
helps young people grow, gain confidence, and develop needed
skills. In improving the lives of the children they serve;
Foster Grandparent volunteers enrich their own lives,
strengthen communities, and bridge proverbial
“generational-gaps” by providing services that are fiscally
unfeasible relative to organizational budgets. The
Corporation for National and Community Service through the
National Senior Corps provides funding via match funding
arrangements. MCCSA is the administrator of the program. The
Lauderdale County Foster Grandparent Program is a United Way
of East Mississippi provides match funding for the Foster
Grandparents program. Private sector donations and community
fund-raising help augment the program. Prerequisites for
assistance from this program are:
* Must be 60 years of age or older
* No longer be in the regular work-force
* Meet income eligibility levels set by the Corporation for
National and Community Service
* Be physically and mentally able to perform required tasks
* Be willing to serve an average of 20 hours per week
* Be willing to accept and follow necessary supervision
* Care about children and desire to help them reach their
fullest potential
Low Income Weatherization Assistance Program
Freddie McCoy, Director
The purpose of the Low Income Weatherization Assistance
Program (LI-WAP) is to increase the energy efficiency of
homes for low-income people- primarily the elderly,
disabled, and families with children. To this end, the
program reduces heating and cooling costs while improving
the health and safety of its clients. As with LIHEAP,
applicants must meet OMB guidelines to be eligible for
assistance from this program. For Weatherization to work, a
Weatherization technician conducts an energy audit on the
single-family, multi-family, or mobile home dwelling.
Diagnostic equipment is used to identify air infiltration
imbalances and areas of heat loss. Technicians also evaluate
related health and safety conditions, such as carbon
monoxide hazards, gas leaks, or moisture problems. The
Weatherization crew installs the most cost effective energy
efficient measures, based on the results of the energy
audit.
SELF SUFFICIENCY SERVICES
Strategies to Ensure Permanent Stability (STEPS)
Marci Ann Bigelow, Program Director
The goal of the STEPS program is to enable families to
attain stable home ownership through a step-by-step
management plan. The STEPS program offers rental assistance,
housing and credit counseling, and case management among
other services.To be Eligible for assistance under this
program, applicants must be: homeless, have children under
18 years of age, have retained employment at least six
months prior to program application, have goal of home
ownership, and be willing to enter case management. |
