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If you're curious where all that federal stimulus money went, you might want to look under the lamp shades at Julie Christensen's house. Twenty-eight energy efficient light bulbs and a new water heater and furnace brought the young mom to tears earlier this year as her home was transformed with weatherization dollars courtesy of the federal plan.
The Magna family, which relies on food stamps to feed its two children, didn't pay a cent. "It's so nice to finally have help," Christensen said this week.
Thousands of Utah homes will become less drafty as $38 million in weatherization funding is spread throughout low-income families over the next three years.
The largest recipient of the funding is the Salt Lake Community Action Program which, for more than four decades, has made it its mission to curb poverty. The organization will receive $10.9 million to make home improvements that will save homeowners and renters money while reducing energy use.
But weatherization is only one way the nonprofit group will boom thanks to its federal stimulus boost. More than a dozen new staff members will help families get enough to eat, stay in their homes and fight for the interests of Utah's low-income residents.
Although all the money is short-term, the hope is that this extraordinary infusion of cash into the nonprofit world will make an enormous difference for the poor.
"It isn't anything glamorous or beautiful -- it's meeting the
This is a strange era for poverty-fighters across the nation. Families that never thought they would seek government assistance have shown up for the first time needing help with their rent, light bill or just a way to feed the kids. The number of Utah households on food stamps continues to break records each month as people fall from the ranks of the middle class.
Salt Lake Community Action Program has seen that change reflected in the high enrollment in its Head Start education programs. At this time of year, hundreds of slots would normally remain open for next fall's classes. This July, 1,900 children have already enrolled -- that's as many kids as the program can serve, though space may open in the weeks ahead.
Federal money may benefit Christensen once again when a new Head Start facility is built in Magna later this year thanks to the stimulus. The facility will allow Magna's Head Start to double from 51 to 102 children.
But weatherization is where Salt Lake CAP's federal stimulus money has perhaps already made the biggest difference.
Thirty-five new staff members, a combination of energy auditors and crew, have been hired. Some were private contractors who saw their work disappear as the economy tanked. Young adult interns have been brought on to learn a trade.
Windows have been replaced; insulation installed. And myriad other changes have led homeowners' gas bills to be cut in half.
The abundance of stimulus dollars won't solve every homeowner's energy dilemma, however. Although the state has had a weatherization program for 30 years, the need remains great, officials say. This new money may triple the amount of homes reached, but only temporarily.
For 58-year-old Okesene Mariner in Rose Park, weatherization was life-changing. Though he is still desperately in need of a way to cool his house, winter will no longer mean turning off the furnace to save money every time he walks out the door.
As the temperatures drops, his new energy-efficient furnace will stay on. "Instead of freezing, it will get warm," he said.
Salt Lake and Tooele County residents can visit Salt Lake Community Action Program at 231 W. 800 South or call 801-359-2444. Homeowners or renters must meet income guidelines.
To enroll your child in one of 70 locations across Salt Lake and Tooele counties, call 801-977-1122 or go to headstart-slcap.org. Families must meet income guidelines.
