Financial Assistance Ministry

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Financial Assistance Ministry

“Whatever you did for one of these least brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Mt 24:40)"

We assist St Thomas More parishioners in need with assistance with utility bill payments. 

We also assist residents of Chapel Hill and Carrboro in need of assistance with utility bill payments who have a disconnect notice once every 12 months. We do not provide rental assistance.

Those seeking assistance, please call 919-942-6216 on Monday mornings only between 8:30-11:30am and leave a message. Messages left on any other day and time are not attended to. Applications are done via telephone (no walk-in's or emails). If we are able to assist you, we will call you back before the end of the day. Due to high volume, we are not able to return all calls.

Mission Statement/Purpose
Ministry members talk to local residents experiencing a financial crisis. We provide a compassionate, listening ear and can offer prayer support and sometimes financial support to help with utilities.

Major Accomplishments
Each year we help 400-500 families that are in need of financial assistance. We give priority to parishioners, families with young children, handicapped persons and the elderly.

Major activity
The ministry is open Mondays from 8:30-11:30am and we receive inquiries over the telephone. We get to know about the person’s situation and make a determination about if/how we are able to assist, and also offer local referrals for additional resourcing.

Meeting Frequency
One ministry member per shift, from 8:30 am-11:30 am on Mondays. Usually we serve once a month. We also have periodic ministry meetings to pray, support each other, and share ideas.

Meeting venue
By telephone

Estimated Time Commitment for Volunteers
3.5 hours monthly

Special Skills for Ministry Volunteers
Ministry members must have compassion for the poor, be able to pray with people, and be able to say “no” sometimes even when needs are great. This is a ministry of hope, encouragement, and discipleship of Jesus Christ. Organization is important and we track our data on an Excel spreadsheet. This is a small team, and good communication with each other is essential. Parishioners interested in this ministry are interviewed and references are required. Please contact Claudina Loh if you are interested in joining this ministry at [email protected]