Grants And Loans

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Go On A Free Archeological Dig

The Lesko’s went on an archeological dig in Alaska and and you can too! Passport in Time is a volunteer archaeology and historic preservation program of the USDA Forest Service. You work with professionals on projects including archaeological excavation, rock art restoration, gathering oral histories, and more. Volunteers have helped stabilize ancient cliff dwellings in New Mexico, excavate a 10,000-year-old village site in Minnesota, restore a historic lookout tower in Oregon, clean vandalized rock art in Colorado, survey for sites in a rugged Montana wilderness, and excavate a 19th-century Chinese mining site in Hell’s Canyon, Idaho. You need to get to the site, but once there many offer free or cheap housing and meal options. To take advantage of this government opportunity contact: Passport in Time Clearinghouse, P.O. Box 31315, Tucson, AZ 85751; 800-281-9176

Visit: www.passportintime.com.

Nurses Receive Financial Help for Bills

The Nurses House financial awards assist with such needs as rent or mortgage payments, food, utilities, telephone and health insurance. When possible, Nurses House attempts to assist applicants in identifying other potential sources of assistance. Awards will vary depending on the applicant’s level of need. Contact: Nurses House, Inc., 2113 Western Ave., Ste. 2, Guilderland, NY 12084-9501; (518) 456-7858; Fax: (518) 452-3760

Visit: www.nurseshouse.org/

Free Help To Fight The Health Care System

You can call government offices and advocacy groups that will do your fighting for you or give you the needed weapons to do your own fighting. Before you call a lawyer, call these free offices: Your state Insurance Commissioner will help you learn your legal rights regarding insurance. Your state Medical Board will review your complaint and help resolve disputes. Your state HMO Board will also resolve disputes. You can also contact the Patient Advocate Foundation, 700 Thimble Shoals Blvd., Suite 200, Newport News, VA 23606; 800-532-5274; www.patientadvocate.org, or the Health Insurance Partnership program at Families USA

Visit: www.patientadvocate.org

45000 To Start An Art Gallery

Echoing Green awards fellowship grants to individual entrepreneurs and two-person teams to fund innovative projects to bring about social change – everything from providing free legal assistance, to developing earthquake-resistant housing, to starting an art gallery in a Laundromat. Grants are $30,000 per year for two years for individuals and $45,000 per year per project for partnerships. For information contact Echoing Green, 212-689-1165

Visit: info@echoinggreen.org, echoinggreen.org

48000 Grant for Veterans to Adapt Their Home for a Disability

Called the Specially Adapted Housing for Disabled Veterans Programs and referred to as Program #64.106 in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, this program provides grants to certain severely disabled veterans acquire a home which is suitably adapted to meet the special needs of their disabilities. Contact your local Veterans Administration office at Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC 20420, 202-273-7390

Visit: www.homeloans.va.gov/eligmap.htm

Town Offers Money For Home Repairs and Improvements

Residents of Bensalem Township may be eligible to receive a loan to repair, improve or rehabilitate their home. The Bensalem Township Housing Program is open to all township residents who own and occupy a single-family home. Multi-family structures and rental units are not eligible. Maximum household limits apply. To be eligible, the gross annual income of a household of four cannot exceed $37,000.

Visit: www.bensalem-township.net/

10000 to fix up Mom’s home

The city of Houston offers $5,000 fix up money for the disabled and elderly in their Emergency Repair Program, and Minneapolis offers up to $10,000. The Rural Housing Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture offers special grants through their Section 504 program of up to $7,500 if you’re over 62 and need to fix up your home. Contact your city government, your county government and your local community development office to learn about local programs. If you have trouble locating your local community development office, contact National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials, 630 I St., NW, Washington, DC 20001; 202-289-3500; or Office of Community Planning and Development, P.O. Box 7189, Gaithersburg, MD 20898; 800-998-9999;For Rural Housing Service contact Single Family Housing Programs, USDA Rural Housing Service, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250; 202-720-4323.

Visit: www.nahro.org

10000 Grant to Fix Up a Home And Make it Healthier

Called the Health Homes Demonstration Grants and referred to as Program #14.901 in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, this program is designed to develop, demonstrate, and promote cost-effective, preventive measures to correct multiple safety and health hazards in the home environment that produce serious diseases and injuries in children of low-income families. HUD is interested in reducing health threats to the maximum number of residents, especially children, in a cost efficient manner. Healthy Homes Demonstration grants are intended to serve a broad array of beneficiaries including homeowners, rental property owners, and public housing residents. For information on where these programs are available in your area contact Ms. Ellen Taylor, Director, Healthy Homes Program, Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control, 451 Seventh Street, SW, Room P3206, Washington, DC 20410, 202-755-1785, extension 116

Visit: Ellen_R._Taylor@hud.gov

Photos Of Grandpa’s Navy Buddies

For those who spent their military years on a ship or in service to the navy, pictures are available to help you remember those exciting times. The U.S. Naval Institute has over 450,000 photographs chronicling the Navy’s ships, battles, and major events. Ship name, hull number, and year of service are helpful in searching for prints. If you request a photo of a ship, make sure to ask for a free two-page history of the vessel to be included with the picture. To purchase a print contact U.S. Naval Institute, 118 Maryland Ave., Annapolis, MD 21402; 410-295-1022

Visit: www.usni.org.

Achievement Award + Cash Award for Charity

The Heinz Family Foundation R.O.S.E. Achievement Award recognizes a woman survivor of violence for her work and achievements in the area of ending violence against women. The recipient’s choice of nonprofit organization receives the cash award. Contact: The R.O.S.E. Fund, Inc., (formerly Ryka Rose Foundation), 175 Federal St., Ste. 455, Boston, MA 02110; (617) 482-5400; Fax: (617) 482-3443

Visit: www.rosefund.org

Save Money On Health Insurance

(Although our winner is covered by Medicare, it does not cover all expenses) The New York State Health Insurance Information, Counseling and Assistance Program (HIICAP) offers free counseling to answer all of your health insurance questions. HIICAP can review Medigap insurance, explain the new Medicare Drug Program, and the new drug card options that are now available. For those living in the state of New York, you can contact the Health Insurance Information counseling and Assistance Program at 800-333-4114 For those living in New York City, contact the Department for the Aging, Two Lafayette St., 16th Floor, New York, NY 10007; 212-333-5511. The following explains the new Medicare Drug Program

Visit: www.hiicap.state.ny.us

3000 To Pay Your Heating Bills and Weatherize Your Home

Two other grant programs for home improvement are the Weatherization Program and the Energy Assistance Program. The Weatherization Program helps to do some household repairs that will make your home more energy efficient. Linda Wildey stated that there is currently a list of people waiting for services, but they are put in order of need. Maximum household income is $14,925 per year, although they take into consideration medical expenses. The Energy Assistance Program will begin again in November and offers help with large heating bills. For more information contact Linda Wildey, Interlocal Community Action Program, 525 E. 7th St. P.O. Box 305, Rushville, IN 46173; 765-932-2863. For more information on Weatherization assistance, check out the programs at Weatherization Assistance Programs Branch, EE44, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20585; 800-DOE-373. For energy assistance information, go to the Office of Community Services, Division of Energy Assistance, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 370 L’Enfant Promenade, SW, 5th Floor West, Washington, DC 20447; 866-674-6327 (toll-free)

Visit: www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/weatherization_assistance/

Over 8000 for High School Film Students

A&E awards grants and scholarships to K-12 students and teachers. Support is given on a national basis and in Canada. There are two different award programs under this Foundation: 1) the A&E Classroom Program, which awards $500 to K-12 teachers that demonstrate creative classroom uses for A&E and History Channel programming; and 2) History Channel Awards in which A&E annually awards 3 scholarships of $5,000 to high school students and 5 grants of $3,000 and a school video library to teachers participating in the National History Day competition. Contact: A & E Television Networks Corporate Giving Program, P.O. Box 1610, Grand Central Station, New York, NY 10163-1610; (212) 210-1400

Visit: www.historychannel.com/classroom/awards.html; www.aande.com

500 to Help You Pay Your Bills

The Lion’s Pride Foundation’s emergency assistance grants offer up to $500 per year to individuals who provide sufficient evidence of need (e.g., water, electricity, mortgage bills). Contact: The Lion’s Pride Foundation, Inc., c/o Delhaize America, Inc., P.O. Box 1330, Salisbury, NC 28145; (704) 633-8250, ext. 2974 or ext. 3385; Fax: (704) 656-4162

Visit: www.foodlion.com

48000 To Buy A Mobile Home

Called the Manufactured Home Loan Insurance – Financing Purchase of Manufactured Homes as Principal Residences of Borrowers Program and referred to as Program #14.110 in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, this program insures lenders against loss on loans. Insured loans may be used to purchase manufactured home units by buyers intending to use them as their principal places of residence. The maximum amount of the loan is $48,600, whether single or multiple modules. The borrower must give assurance that the unit will be placed on a site which complies with local zoning and land development requirements. Contact your local office of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Visit: www5.hud.gov:63001/po/i/netlocator/

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