So....they acknowledge there is a problem....Now,what are you going to do about it?

GonzoFL wrote:http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aXaMufrB.FA0

The government has shown me they do not care about the people. The government wants all the unemployed people to just disappear. The government will not listen to me, so there is not a whole lot I can do. Just waiting to lose my house. Soon I won't be able to job hunt anymore as my car is on it's last leg. I have spent yet another day dressed in a sweatshirt and Jacket, INSIDE, as I cannot afford to get my heat fixed. What am I going to do???? What in the Hell are THEY going to do!!!!

Sheila wrote:

GonzoFL wrote:http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aXaMufrB.FA0

The government has shown me they do not care about the people. The government wants all the unemployed people to just disappear. The government will not listen to me, so there is not a whole lot I can do. Just waiting to lose my house. Soon I won't be able to job hunt anymore as my car is on it's last leg. I have spent yet another day dressed in a sweatshirt and Jacket, INSIDE, as I cannot afford to get my heat fixed. What am I going to do???? What in the Hell are THEY going to do!!!!

It's okay when Sheila's circumstances apply to me, but when they apply to Sheila and people like Sheila, another shard of my heart just hurts more.

Sheila, just hang in there...I know it sounds maudlin, but it's the best I can offer. Let's hope it can't get worse.

studioWI wrote:

Sheila wrote:

GonzoFL wrote:http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aXaMufrB.FA0

The government has shown me they do not care about the people. The government wants all the unemployed people to just disappear. The government will not listen to me, so there is not a whole lot I can do. Just waiting to lose my house. Soon I won't be able to job hunt anymore as my car is on it's last leg. I have spent yet another day dressed in a sweatshirt and Jacket, INSIDE, as I cannot afford to get my heat fixed. What am I going to do???? What in the Hell are THEY going to do!!!!

It's okay when Sheila's circumstances apply to me, but when they apply to Sheila and people like Sheila, another shard of my heart just hurts more.

Sheila, just hang in there...I know it sounds maudlin, but it's the best I can offer. Let's hope it can't get worse.

Ah, thank you for the encouragement, that was so kind. I really do try to be positive most days, today I was just having a moment. Sometimes I just let it all get to me, though I know I shouldn't. Nothing gets accomplished by being negative. Thanks again.

Yes, the government has let down 'We The People'. I have $875 left and no more extensions. My Grandma passed away and I can't afford to travel to the funeral. I have two bad teeth which hinders my food intake but I lost my health insurance when I lost my job. I have three week, 3 Weeks, to find employment, at which time my little county just went up a whole percent (13. in unemployment. The counties North, South and East have all done the same. I'd love to move somewhere else... but I can't even afford to have a tooth pulled. How can we let the Government know that we deserve the same respect and dignity they gave Wall Street and Big Corps? It's so unfair.l

sharonB--

So sorry to hear about your loss. It's just hard to take multiple problems and losses all at one time. I hope something comes through for you.

You've probably already read it all, but be sure to check on the resources for dental help in the health sections of this board. There's not much, but in some areas of Florida it's possible to find clinics that are free or very low-cost. I've been having the same problem for over a year and only endured it with repeated antibiotics prescriptions I managed to get and got the meds free from Publix. Here in Broward dental help is as rare as hen's teeth, but finally after a year I think I have an opportunity to get some help for my abscessed teeth from the county health dept.

Good luck.

Thank you for that information. I have to do something. On top of losing my Grandma, my daughter goes to All Children's in Tampa for surgery on her kidney. At least I still have some money to get there and back. Way to much to handle at once. I sent a letter to Governor Crist and Koftcamp asking how they would feel and what would they do in my (and a million) other peoples situation. How I am suppose to find employment when the unemployment rate is going up and the benefits are going down? I don't have any plans on hearing back from them.

Here is another little story:

I emailed AWI asking about help with going back to school or work. I was surprised when someone called me. We talked about what isn't there and I was given a phone number. I also mentioned about running out of benefits in 3 weeks. He emailed me back stating there was nothing left after Tier IV so I replied about becoming homeless, losing my car insurance and internet I need to attend college. He emailed me back stating he sent my information to Sarasota and Ft Myers in regards to that job thing, Employ Florida I believe. You know, where all that money was given to help us back to work? Well Sarasota never called so I guess there's no work but Ft Myers did. All this lady did was give me more phone numbers to call. So, I called the number and got WIA. (Workforce Investment Act). I was chased from there and given more numbers. There's no help out there. Just people with titles and a job.

So, from an email and a phone call from Tallahassee asking about jobs and schooling, I ended up at the Human Resources Dept. and The Homeless Coalition and it took 6 people and a slew of phone numbers to get there. THAT my friends is where all the money is going. Never did I receive anything from the Employ Florida people in Sarasota or Fort Myers. I do have information on where I MIGHT get help when I become homeless though.

Sharon,
Hang in there...it's so discouraging, I know. I don't expect anything from anyone at AWI cuz that agency has been a dud from the start. But help will probably be community based, because everyone is this state seems to be aware of how bad it is. People who can help are helping... In the off-topics discussions, this same link is posted, www.dentistryfromtheheart.org

merry

Sharon--

In all those phone calls did you talk to anyone about this program?-- the new "Florida Back to Work" program:

http://www.floridajobs.org/publications/news_rel/FBTW_recieves_fundng.htm

The WIA program is useful if you already have benefits, or else some kind of means, even if it's student loans, to survive during training. But is not too great for immediate help.

If you have a dependent child it sounds like this FBTW thing might be of help to you. (In fact, if you weren't eligible for Medicaid before and you have a dependent child, you probably will be as soon as you lose UI benefits.) The date on that press release is only a week ago, so anyone you may have spoken with today may not even know about it. The bureaucracies are typically knowledgeable only about something in their own bureaucratic tunnel, not parallel programs in other areas.

It's huge work getting through the agency maze, and very angering, but sometimes the help is there that you deserve, even though you don't deserve to have to work so hard to find it.

Also, check through this Benefit Wiki "Survival Links" to see if there's anything there that might provide some help.

[Some people talk disparagingly about how the federal govt can't manage anything well, and how many things should be left to the states. To that I can only roll my eyes. Relative to the states, many federal agencies are run by professional career people (not talking about the politicians here) that I've had only good experiences with. But state agencies--well, let's just say they sometimes mean well, to be charitable at most, but are so disorganized ahd haphazard in their organizational structure as to be ineffectual.]

Thanks Nancy...it's nice to see knowledgeable people respond to items in this forum that I know little about. I'm starting to not like coming here because I feel I'm in the process of watching Obama's "Katrina" being played out in front of me, in real time...and it hurts.

How have we grown to be so callous in our benevolence? I only wish I knew, but Nancy, I thank you for your kindness. I'm an oldschooler that doesn't see kindness as a weakness...despite what every other Hollywood movie says.

And Sharon? Hang tough...please.

HI Everyone. The posts after mine (Nancy, merry, studioWI ) and all the others have been very helpful. I have gotten further along due to this website than I would have on my own.
OK! It was the Florida Back To Work Program I spoke about in regards to Sarasota and Fort Myers. The man I spoke with from AWI was Sam Collins. WIA people will not help me because I am taking my courses on-line. I am still a full-time student receiving all the credits and documentation as I would in person. Here's another thing; a little (white lie) if collecting foodstamps. DO NOT tell them you are a student. You will lose some if not all of your foodstamps. They have like a 20 hour plus thing where you have to work if you're a student and want to get foodstamps. I thought I would've got a pat on the back and a atta girl. It's been 35 years since I was in school!

A lot of these agencies need to update their policies in regards to how technology is changing the world. That foodstamp rule was made before there was online courses. School is the only way I can see an out for me. So, I guess the bottom line is I'm on my own and more than likely, so are you.

Sharon --
Do you mind if i ask what you're studying? Sounds like a great idea but i know it's not income. The thing about Back to Work is.... everyone i know who's called got the same answer, go register for Back to Work, then find a participating employer and job thru Employ Fla. In theory it sounds good, but as Nancy said, the program is new. I wonder if you qualify even if taking courses? Guess that depends on who's paying. I hear ya on online school..

edited to add - It looks like participating employers were selected last month, so this program is probably slow to start.

Good grief, I wish there were some consistency in policies from county to county with these programs! With all the red tape I'm still going through with getting my application done for classes that will start May 10 at a local college here in Broward County, I have to say that they at least seem to have their act together (with a few hiccups here and there) when it comes to getting clear info out about their WIA program.

We have one big list here of programs, the "ITA" list; it doesn't appear to matter whether classes are online or not, just whether they're on the list. I actually was all set to take a 10-month program that was entirely online a few weeks ago, but had to change course entirely because it turned out I couldn't use student loans at that institution (weird rule, nothing to do with it being online).

So now I'm lined up to take a program that includes online classes, but not all. Since I worked in online education for some years and know the financial savings that our educational system can get from using online courses, it makes no sense, if a course is accredited, to limit online courses for any of these programs. Are we still in the 20th century or what!

SharonB, I hadn't remembered that you were also in school. I never heard of that foodstamp requirement. You have to be working when there are also no jobs to be found? Amazing. Is there any Work Study spot available to you through the school? And thanks for the tip. I was only hoping to fill in one month anyway with foodstamp help, before getting my student loans, since I don't start for over a month. Guess I'll see what happens with that.

I filled out the FAFSA on the web in mid February, submitted the application to Daytona State College, how long does it take for this to get processed, it has been over a month, my unemployment expired on March 1, so I might not even have an address once this finally goes through.

daytonaman wrote:I filled out the FAFSA on the web in mid February, submitted the application to Daytona State College, how long does it take for this to get processed, it has been over a month, my unemployment expired on March 1, so I might not even have an address once this finally goes through.

Please continue this discussion under the Training and Education thread