Hey there Everyone,
Sorry I haven't been more active on here and in the chats. My move to Iowa put me in a part-time position, with a level of effort of 25%.
My question is simple. How many of you work with a community provider that you are asked to pay a membership fee for in order to use their services? Pre-Covid we had a wonderful warehouse located 30 min from us where we could take veterans' shopping needs and go pick them up for them for FREE. Post-Covid, we are lucky to get in there once every 2 months, and the supplies are usually depleted. We have a new non-profit in our local area that is pairing with other service agencies to offer items like clothes (socks, underwear, gloves, hats, etc.), toiletries, cleaning supplies, and more than food stamps will not cover. Our membership fee is $300 per quarter and we have unlimited trips to the warehouse for our vets.
I see this as 100% justifiable because we are providing local service support. The veteran is not allowed to enter the warehouse, the service agency goes on their behalf.
Can anyone help me out on this one? This is the only agency in our area offering such items and they are not available at a food pantry (we have a couple of those).
I miss the VUB family a lot! Not sure how we ended up in Iowa, but I'm sure God has a plan!
Thanks so much,
Tonya Kuranda