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Free Assistance for people living in Michigan .

 

The search for utilities , rent , medical needs , food ... the list could go on .It  can sometimes seem like quite a maze of dead -ends to search for these things.

 Hopefully , this page will sort some of the tangle out so that the process is a little less frustrating.

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ENERGY  

 

 For ENERGY ASSISTANCE in Michigan , here is the LIHEAP , or LOW INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. ENERGY ASSISTANCE ( HEATor cooling ).Additional resources to use to make sure you and your family are warm ( or cool in the Summer) are available.

 

 

FOOD

Of course WIC (for pregnant women and young children) and  FOOD STAMPS OR EBT CARD for groceries  are available

from the government. The EBT card has been a God-send for my family .However , there are many other ways to obtain or supplement your food resour


 

 

 

HOUSING 

 

If you are in immediate need of shelter, please call
the Department of Human Services hotline at1-800-A-SHELTER (1-800-274-3583) . For section 8 housing Section 8 Housing Information resources , go here :
SECTION 8 HOUSING ASSISTANCE

 

MORE HOUSING RESOURCES :

 

Fair Housing of Southwest Michigan
104 Calhoun St
Battle Creek, MI 49017
1-866-637-0733
Fax: 1-269-565-4282
Offices are also located in Kalamazoo.

 

 

 

 

Community Housing Network, Inc.
570 Kirts Bld. #231
Troy, MI 48084
(248)928-0111
(866)282-3119
Chuck Bratton: cbratton@chninc.net
COMMUNITY HOUSING NETWORK

 

 

 

  TELEPHONE

 

Lifeline and Link-UP programs ensure everyone has access to telephone service.

 

These programs provide discounts to income-eligible individuals for both the initial installation costs of telephone service and for monthly telephone bills. Unfortunately, the majority of people who are eligible for these programs have never heard of them! ( More evidence pointing to the near useless human services in Michigan-sl)

 

 The "low income" qualification is not set as low as you might think (depending on where you live, it can be as high as 135% to 150% of the federal poverty level guidelines), and you may qualify even if you receive social security or other forms of assistance.

 

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Those who qualify could receive a discount in local telephone service of around $10 per month, a reduction of up to 50% on local telephone line installation service charges, and have the option to block outgoing long distance service, free of charge (this is not a requirement, but if you allow toll calls to be blocked the usual security deposit may be waived).

 

You can get more details and see if you qualify by visiting the Universal Service Administrative Company's LifelineSupport.org site,

 or the Federal Communications Commission'sLifeline and Link-Up site or

 Get Connected: Afford-A-Phone site. - fromhttp://michigantelephone.mi.org/