The Suffield Emergency Aid Association (EAA) has partnered with Operation Fuel for over 20 years to help hundreds of Suffield households with energy assistance.
The EAA is one of Operations Fuel’s fuel banks. Without Operation Fuel, the Suffield fuel bank wouldn’t be able to provide energy assistance to as many Suffield residents as it currently does, explains Janet Frechette, executive director of the EAA. Operation Fuel is a private, nonprofit program that provides emergency energy assistance year-round through its statewide network of fuel banks to the elderly, families, and individuals who are having a financial crisis and have nowhere else to go for help.
“Our relationship with Operation Fuel has served our residents well by providing us with the ability to maximize the resources available to our residents. As a result of the Operation Fuel program, we are able to piggyback various fuel programs to provide the most overall benefit. In doing so, we are able to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our most vulnerable Suffield residents,” added Frechette.
During the past fiscal year, which began on July 1, 2015 EAA provided $16,280 in Operation Fuel energy assistance grants to 39 Suffield households. Frechette said there was a drop in energy assistance applications from the previous year because of the milder winter and lower home heating oil prices. She added that improved weather and lower energy prices “were a nice benefit to our residents experiencing financial challenges and for our seniors living on a fixed income.”
One Suffield resident that the partnership helped was an elderly widow who was living on a fixed income and recently had a lengthy hospital stay. When she returned home, she needed propane to heat her home. After reviewing her application, Operation Fuel approved the grant and faxed the authorization to the vendor the same afternoon the application was submitted. The woman received a $500 propane delivery the next business day!
Another Operation Fuel grant was used to help a Suffield couple with two young children. Although the father is working full time, plus overtime whenever it’s available, the family is struggling to pay for basic necessities. Operation Fuel provided the family with a $500 home heating oil delivery.
Brenda Watson, who is Operation Fuel’s director of community programs, said that without the help of Frechette, her staff and the EAA, Suffield residents wouldn’t have access to Operation Fuel’s energy assistance program. She added, “Energy affordability is an issue in all Connecticut communities.”
In addition to the Operation Fuel program, the EAA also administers the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program for lower-income households that meet income-eligibility requirements and a private fuel fund.
Suffield residents who need energy assistance should call the EAA at 860-668-1986.