Services offered to help families, individuals in need
WAYNESBURG — Children file off a bus to head to an after school program or free tutoring help. People stand, waiting to walk down a line to receive their monthly food at Produce to People.
These are just a few of the sights people will see as they make their way around the borough of Waynesburg.
According to a 2012 report from the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC), the average household income in Waynesburg is $38,224, compared to the National Average of $42,837.
Waynesburg has been a part of one of the poorest counties in Pennsylvania for many years.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture and Economic Research Service, 15.9 percent of families in Greene County were below the poverty line in 2013. A family of four is considered in poverty if their income is below $22,050.
Greene County provides many services that offer relief to families and individuals at little or no cost.
One organization that provides services like these is the Eva K. Bowlby Library, which offers after school tutoring to kids from kindergarten through 12th grade, and also offers adult classes in the Greene County area, at no cost.
Diana Moninger, Family Literacy Coordinator of Bowlby Library, said services like those at Bowlby lessen the financial burdens that face local families.
“We are frequently contacted by parents who are seeking homework help and tutoring and are relieved that Bowlby Library provides the services for free because of the exorbitant costs through other commercial locations,” said Moninger.
According to Moninger, the program was started to provide literacy help to people who need it at no cost to them.
“(The programs) level the playing field because they provide access to educational opportunity and homework help,” said Moninger.
Many of these situations lack a two-parent household, as 50.8 percent of single women in Greene County are in poverty.
The per capita income is $17,816 and many families struggle to provide the help they need in many areas.
Moninger said the notion of helping provide a service to these families provides a sense of inner joy for her.
“It’s tremendously rewarding to be able to provide these services to these students and know the parents have one less thing to worry about,” said Moninger.
Another organization that provides assistance to low income families is the Waynesburg Salvation Army. They provide utility and rent assistance, lodging in hotels and emergency food along with many other items of support. Sister Audrey Quinn, director at the Salvation Army, believes that it is just one small dividend that helps the struggling families.
“The Salvation Army is just part of the group in Greene County,” said Quinn. “All agencies work together to meet people’s needs. We’re very needed in Greene County because there are a lot of people who are unemployed or underemployed and just can’t make ends meet.”
Quinn feels that this type of program is a valuable service because it gives a lift to people, and in turn can help lead them to becoming more self-sufficient in the near future.
She stressed that it is not just one or two organizations that provide these services, but many groups that help provide for Greene County.
“In Greene County, there is a lot of collaboration among agencies,” said Quinn. “If we can only assist someone with so much money because our funds are short, then we can call on another agency to help. We all work together to help that person.”
With Greene County’s unemployment rate at around 5.5 percent, according to the SPC, organizations like these continue to serve the members of their local community.