When Families Struggle to Put Food on the Table or Can’t Sleep Because of Unpaid Bills, Path$ 2 Benefits is There to Help

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT –
Lyn Kugel, lkugel@pathwayspa.org, 610-543-5022 x211

When Families Struggle to Put Food on the Table or Can’t Sleep Because of Unpaid Bills, Path$ 2 Benefits is There to Help

Path$ 2 Benefits Works with Area Families to Provide Benefits Assistance and Financial Literacy

Come see Path$ 2 Benefits in action at the PA CareerLink
990 Spring Garden
Philadelphia, PA
March 11 at 11:30 AM

Event Includes:

• Welcome and Path$ 2 Benefits Program Announcement: Carol Goertzel, President and CEO, PathWays PA
• PA CareerLink Perspective on Path$ 2 Benefits: Jim Nichols or Sue Gutschow, PA CareerLink® Operations Administrators
• Value Added to the PA CareerLink through Path$ 2 Benefits: Nicki Woods, PA CareerLink® Administrator
• Path$ 2 Benefits: How it Works: W. Chris Rahemtulla, Lead Financial Educator and Program Coordinator, PathWays PA
• How Path$ 2 Benefits Helped Me: Client

Philadelphia, PA – For many struggling families, each day brings a new set of impossible challenges:

What is more important to pay money for – food, heating, or rent?
Where can our children go while we are at work?
Can we as parents afford to eat today, or do we need all of the food for our children?
Do we even have food for them?

Path$ 2 Benefits, a PathWays PA program funded through a grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, works with families to answer those questions. “By meeting one-on-one with families to assess their needs, we can present new ways to overcome financial challenges,” said Lyn Kugel, Senior Director of Self-Sufficiency Programs at PathWays PA. “During these economic times, Path$ to Benefits can help families by offering specific tools and strategies which build financial literacy and savings. We can assist families in accessing resources and benefits such as SNAP (food stamps). Families who take part in the Path$ 2 Benefits program have a real opportunity to change their lives for the better.”

Kelly Rindone, a Path$ 2 Benefits client, knows what it means to change her life through financial literacy. “Before I came to Path$ 2 Benefits, my credit was damaged because of inaccuracies and out-of-date items on my report. I lost my job and was struggling to pay my bills on a significantly reduced income. But since I went to one-on-one counseling with Chris and participated in financial education workshops with Erin, I now have SNAP (food stamps) to help provide food and have a better handle on my finances, and have even started a savings account.”

The PathWays PA Path$ 2 Benefits program provides access to counseling and workshops on banking and budgeting assistance, credit and debt management counseling, identity theft repair, financial goal planning, financial crisis management, college planning, housing assistance, and free tax preparation. Clients can also be screened for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP/food stamps), the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and many other services. Even unemployed and dislocated workers can take part in programs that improve their credit without costing money.

Please join us on March 11 to see Path$ 2 Benefits in action!

About PathWays PA
PathWays PA, founded in 1978, has a consistently strong record of outreach and service to low income, underserved populations. Throughout its history, PathWays PA has provided low income populations of Southeastern PA with access to benefits, counseling, job training, and asset building strategies. All of PathWays PA's diverse programs and initiatives are designed to aid low income, underserved, and at-risk populations. We are committed to promoting client self-sufficiency which leads to the fulfillment of our mission: to help women, teens, children and families achieve economic independence and family well-being.

About PA CareerLink
PA CareerLink is the commonwealth’s premier, one-stop employment network. With nearly 70 locations statewide, including five in Philadelphia, PA CareerLink is helping make the connection between job seekers and employers across Pennsylvania. At PA CareerLink offices, customers can learn about and apply for jobs, advertise job openings, participate in free workshops to improve their resume or interviewing skills, receive skills assessment testing, learn about and apply for financial aid opportunities and more.