Newport News residents struggling financially in the pandemic can apply for assistance in a new program from the city’s Department of Human Services.
The Supplemental Assistance Funding for Emergencies, or SAFE, program offers one-time assistance with various expenses, such as food, utility bills, child care, rent or mortgage, transportation and medication.
Funds from the program total $1.4 million from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, or CARES, Act. The program launched less than two weeks ago, and staff is processing calls for assistance from 140 households — a total of 171 adults and 193 children.
Ginger Blount-Moore, deputy director of human services, said the SAFE program targets residents who typically don’t qualify assistance because of their income level, adding that there is no maximum income limit for the program. Some people in need have been turned away from other programs, she said, and human services wanted to do something to help them.
Half the SAFE money came to the city in June, and it got the other half toward the end of July. Blount-Moore said the money went to the SAFE program because of its potential to benefit many residents.
To qualify for assistance, recipients must be a resident of Newport News and not meet federal and state eligibility requirements for social service benefits. They must also demonstrate a loss of income due to COVID-19.
Blount-Moore said staff may direct a person to other forms of assistance if they qualify.
The department has received calls from people who have been laid-off, furloughed and experiencing numerous types of challenges, Blount-Moore said. The program started at the end of July, and she said most of the requests were related to rent, followed by utility bills.
The Department of Human Services will give out money on a first-come, first-served basis to qualified applicants until funds run out or until the end of 2020. Residents can only receive assistance from the program once.
To apply for assistance or ask questions about the program, call the Newport News Department of Human Services at 757-926-6161.
Josh Reyes, 757-247-4692, joreyes@dailypress.com
