Pulaski Community Action

Meeting with Janet Johnson—Pulaski Community Action NRV
June 3, 2010
(540)980-5525(w)
jjohnson@nrcaa.org

About
Pulaski Community Action is directed by Janet Johnson. New River Community Action Inc. is an emergency assistance program and is not meant to act as a sustainable means of assistance to individuals. There are offices located in each county of the New River Valley and one office in Radford City. Each office operates independently from each other and has a different set of rules and guidelines for who receives assistance. Pulaski Community Action allows clients to come for food assistance once a month and how no limits on the amount of visits a particular client can make.

Programs
Pulaski Community Action has several different programs that reside under their umbrella:
Emergency Home Repair: Homeowners register with Community Action to receive small home repairs that will make their homes safer, warmer, or dryer. A group called Hearts and Hammers usually carries out the work. Occasionally a summer youth camp called SPY! (Service Project Youth!) will complete some of the repairs.
Virginia Cares: This is a program that helps recently released convicts build occupational skills, find employment, and transition back into society.
Emergency Food Assistance: Clients can come once a month to receive emergency food. Clients are accepted based on income.

Partners
-Food Lion—Funding, Feeding America Boxes, and discounts on food.
-Daily Bread Pulaski—occasional food storage.
-Hunters for the Hungry—meat during hunting seasons.
-Pepperidge Farm—Donate Bread
-Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE)—occasionally provides classes for clients.

Funding
-Food Lion Foundation grants
-Community Donations

Needs-More meat and perishable items.
-More space for the pantry, however an offsite location would not benefit them. This leads to complications because the space they have available to them is not large enough and there does not seem to be a way to relocate the pantry within the existing facility.
-Paper products, sanitary products, and detergent.
-Would like to have more education available for clientele
-Believes there is a growing need for more affordable housing i.e. subsidized housing, Section 8 housing, HUD housing, etc.
-More jobs and training.