HELP A FAMILY IN NEED WITH A "TASTE OF HOPE"

Many of us have the good fortune of knowing that we will be able to pay for services like water and sewer. However, the possible interruption of a basic service like water is a major event for families with financial difficulty. We invite you to help families in need through an automatic donation program that will add less than one dollar per month to your bill. OWASA developed the "Taste of Hope" program in 1997 as an optional, voluntary way for our customers to provide temporary assistance to low- and moderate-income families when they have difficulty paying an OWASA bill. Here's how the Taste of Hope program works:

• When you sign up, your bill will be automatically rounded up to the nearest whole dollar amount--for example, from $53.73 to $54.
  The additional 27 cents goes into the Taste of Hope Fund. There is no administrative expense deducted because the Taste of Hope service was built into our billing system at negligible cost.
  
• Taste of Hope donations are administered locally by the Inter-Faith Council, a local non-profit agency which has helped families in need for many years. Some funds are also provided to Water Partners International, a non-profit service agency that supports water supply projects in developing nations.

For a few cents each month, you can make a big difference at a crucial time for families with limited means. We invite you to call OWASA Customer Service at 968-4421 for more information and to sign up as a Taste of Hope contributor. To sign up on-line please click here.

Please click here to read a letter from Chris Moran, Executive Director of the Inter-Faith Council, regarding the need for donations to the Taste of Hope program.

A MESSAGE FROM THE INTER-FAITH COUNCIL

Dear OWASA Customer:

Can you imagine not having water to drink, to wash dishes and clothes, to bathe or shower, and flush toilets?

Unfortunately, some families in our community are at times unable to pay their water bills. The slow economy is continuing to affect our community, and low-income families often face difficult choices in making ends meet.

Fortunately, there are several good programs in place that can help these families-if funds are sufficient. One of these assistance mechanisms is the "Taste of Hope" program funded by OWASA customers' voluntary donations. Therefore, we invite you to join with other OWASA customers by donating to this simple but critical assistance program.

If you participate as a Taste of Hope donor, your monthly water bill will be simply rounded up to the nearest dollar and the added amount is your donation to the Taste of Hope fund. While a contribution of less than $1 per month may seem modest, it will make a very big difference to dozens of families each year.

If you are already a Taste of Hope donor, we thank you on behalf of the many people you have helped and those you will help in the future.

Thanks to you and all OWASA customers who care about others in need!

Sincerely,

Chris Moran, Executive Director

The  IFC Crisis Intervention team, left to right: Ms. Josie Hartman, Client Services Representative; Ms. Kristin Lavergne, Community Services Director; Diego Torres, Client Services Representative; Ms. Shanna Jefferson, Client Services Representative; Ms. Lauren Hart, Hispanic Outreach Coordinator; and Ms. Shannon Gigliotti, Client Services Representative.

To sign up as a donor

Additional information about the Taste of Hope program

Taste of Hope is a cooperative initiative made possible by the contributions of OWASA customers. The Inter-Faith Council for Social Service (IFC) administers Taste of Hope assistance to local residents.

The Taste of Hope program is funded only through voluntary donations.

Donations are tax deductible. (Please consult your tax advisor.)

The Inter-Faith Council receives Taste of Hope funds through OWASA to temporarily assist families unable to pay their water bills. The IFC also provides family budget counseling.

When local customer assistance needs are met through the Inter-Faith Council, some Taste of Hope funds are made available to WaterPartners International, a private non-profit agency, for water resource projects in developing nations.

The IFC is a private, nonprofit service agency that has helped families in need since 1963. The IFC provides food, shelter, health, crisis intervention, utility bill assistance and other services to thousands of people each year. The IFC is a tax-exempt charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. Address: 110 W. Main Street, Carrboro, NC 27510 Telephone: (919) 929-6380 E-mail: admin@ifcmailbox.org

OWASA is the public, nonprofit water and sewer utility that has served the Carrboro-Chapel Hill community since 1977. The Chapel Hill Town Council, Carrboro Board of Aldermen and Orange County Board of Commissioners appoint the 9-member OWASA Board of Directors. Address: 400 Jones Ferry Road, Carrboro, NC 27510 Telephone: (919) 968-4421
Fax: 968-4464 Website: www.owasa.org E-mail: webmaster@owasa.org

WaterPartners International is a private, nonprofit organization that has supported water resource projects in developing nations since 1990. WaterPartners International is a tax-exempt charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. Address: PO Box 22680, Kansas City, MO 64113-0680. Telephone: (913) 312-8600 E-mail: info@water.org
Website: www.water.org

Children enjoying water from a WaterPartners International project in Chichoy, Guatemala