Sandra Simmons, Executive Director of St. Mary's Outreach Center, prepares to serve seniors attending the Center's annual Mardi Gras celebration.
Photo credit: Steffi Graham
"People can go their entire lives being loved and cared for, but nothing impacts a life more than the love and care of a stranger. For me, St. Mary's Outreach Center was that stranger who entered my life and made a difference."
Helping Seniors Live at Home
A woman walked into the St. Mary’s Outreach Center (SMOC). She needed help so that she could pay her Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) Company bill. She had already received assistance from the Maryland Energy Assistance Program. BGE had turned off her service. The woman was caring for her children and a disabled sister in her home.
At SMOC (which is a satellite Fuel Fund agency), she encountered Sandra Simmons, a blur of activity who has directed and managed SMOC from its birth in 2006 to the present. "Immediately, we provided the Fuel Fund for this woman,” said Simmons. “That same afternoon, the client called our office to report that BGE had arrived to turn her service back on. She was so grateful for the assistance we gave her. This is just one of many such stories we can tell here at SMOC, thanks to the financial support we received from the Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle."
With the BWGC grant funds, SMOC hired Carol Wolbert, a part-time staff member. With the addition of Wolbert, SMOC has been better able to achieve its mission of assisting economically disadvantaged seniors maintain self-sufficiency and live independently in their community with dignity and self-respect. The program serves the neighborhoods of Hampden, Medfield, Remington and Woodberry in Baltimore City.
Also, with the additional staffing, SMOC has been able to expand its partnerships with organizations that assist seniors—organizations such as the Maryland Food Bank's Senior Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Fuel Fund of Maryland. Already, 173 low-income clients (mainly women) have used these two programs. Of this number, 81 have benefited from Fuel Fund assistance.
Additionally, SMOC provides hands-on assistance to seniors who need information about benefits associated with local, state, and federal programs for which they are eligible. These benefits include Renters/Homeowners Tax Credits, all parts of Medicare, Water Bill Discount for Seniors, and Maryland Energy Assistance.
Another SMOC goal is greater visibility in the community. Staff members are now speaking at community-council meetings and social clubs more often, sending flyers out to the community, and having fundraisers. In fall 2011, SMOC held a Fall Harvest Luncheon for which the BWGC supplied the paper goods.
The Giving Circle’s financial support has been especially important since SMOC receives no government funding.
Written by Shirley Kaufman