Cooling assistance and fans in Brazos County.
The region can oftentimes be hit with temperatures in the high 90s and low 100s during the summer. When this occurs, finding relief from the heat and locating help for paying cooling bills is essential for comfort and safety. A few agencies in Brazos County Texas are there to assist the low income and families that are struggling.
Project Unity is another local agency that does what they can to help the less fortunate and residents who are most at risk. In previous summers, the non-profit organization has distributed free fans to local residents. Those who are most at risk will usually include seniors, people with a medical condition, or families with young children. The fans are donated to Project Unity from people and businesses in the community. Anyone needing help in order to cool down their homes may want to contact them. However there are periods of time when the Brazos County organization will not have fans to hand out. Call (979) 775-6788.
While Project Unity is always glad to receive fan donations and to then pass the units on to the community, that is not their main objective. They are really more concerned with helping people create sustainable lives, which includes obtaining jobs, increasing their income, attending job training, and becoming self-sufficient.
The organization has also received phone calls from low income and people who are struggling, and the callers are asking for help to pay their monthly cooling and utility bills for months. The number of calls will tend to increase during the summer when electricity usage increases for air conditioner use.
So the needs of the greater Brazos community is a bigger problem than just dealing with the heat. The fact is when people can’t pay their water or electricity bills, then a free fan isn’t going to do much. In other words, people need to have electricity in order to plug their fan in.
For those people who do need cash assistance, Project Unity typically directs those callers to other resources. Families who need assistance with bill payments will often be referred to the Brazos Valley Community Action Agency, which serves 10 counties in the area. This agency will usually receive state and federal government funding for paying utility and utility bills.
As indicated, the Brazos Valley Community Action Agency is another place to call when you are facing a difficult period. Any utility assistance provided will always be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis. It is only offered by appointment only, and people need to be income-eligible and meet other guidelines and criteria.
The agency has several offices around the region, including in Brazos County. In most cases, they are working at maximum capacity to help people find relief from summer heat, or to help them sign up for cooling bill assistance and programs such as LIHEAP. There have been some days when the county has received more than 200 applications to provide help to the needy and less fortunate. Call the community action agency at 855-252-1467.
Twin City Mission (phone 979-822-7511) is one of the places people turn to in order to seek shelter. This location will usually see a surge in individuals seeking assistance during heat waves. The average nightly number of people staying at the facility will usually remain constant, however there can be a spike in people stopping by when Brazos County Texas faces extreme heat.
|
