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Pisgah Legal opens Waynesville office, offers program to help working families get cash and healthcare BY KYLE PERROTTI N EWS E DITOR s Pisgah Legal Services continues to grow and better serve its clientele, a key challenge has simply been getting word of its ability to help low-income households out to the public. The nonprofit covers the 18 counties that make up Western North Carolina, but sometimes the seven westernmost counties can be a bit tougher to navigate, considering they are the most rugged, and some are sparsely populated and offer few resources. However, that problem may have been slightly alleviated as a new office has opened within Mountain Projects’ Waynesville building.
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Smoky Mountain News
July 6-12, 2022
NEW DIGS
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In addition to bolstering Pisgah Legal Services’ presence in the western counties, the nonprofit also hopes it will ease the burden that can fall on clients who have to drive long distances amid record-high gas prices. Staffing the Waynesville office is Jessi Stone, Regional Director of Health and Economic Opportunity for the western counties. Stone, who was previously The Smoky Mountain News’ news editor, has been on the job about five months, the last two of which she’s spent in her new digs. Stone, who noted Pisgah Legal Services is also looking at setting up offices in Sylva and Franklin, said that while she spends plenty of time traveling around Western North Carolina, her new spot gives her the opportunity to do something she couldn’t when working from home. “Now I can have office hours here,” she said. “People can call and make an appointment, and they can bring in documents.” “I can do evening hours too if someone needs an appointment after 5,” she added. If someone doesn’t have time for a long meeting, they can drop off forms for Stone to scan remotely so she can work without them having to be present. “I can call them when their return is
ready or if I have questions during the process,” she said. The new office builds on an existing partnership between Pisgah Legal Services and Mountain Projects. “It’s good to be in the same building as our grant partner,” she said. Their intake people see clients, and they can send people to me for taxes or healthcare, and it’s a built-in trust network. If Mountain Projects refers them to us, then I’m right here in the building.” In a release sent out by Pisgah Legal Services, Mountain Projects Executive Director Patsy Davis conveyed her excitement.
“It’s good to be in the same building as our grant partner. Their intake people see clients, and they can send people to me for taxes or healthcare, and it’s a built-in trust network. If Mountain Projects refers them to us, then I’m right here in the building.” — Jessi Stone
“Anything Mountain Projects can do to get nonprofits to work together and serve people with multiple problems from the same office location is something I really believe in,” Davis said.
TAX SERVICES As inflation continues to climb past its current 40-year high, Pisgah Legal Services is also offering free help for families with a
Jessi Stone
household income below $58,000 per year that can get them money they are due from the federal government, with some folks receiving upward of $15,000. In the news release, Pisgah Legal Services Executive Director Jim Barrett said there’s no reason to leave money on the table. “Even if you earn little or no money and don’t usually file taxes, you may be eligible for thousands of dollars in child tax credits,” he said. “There are two special tax credits available to working families that could add up to thousands of dollars. The Child Tax Credit pays up to $3,600 per child and the Earned Income Tax Credit is worth up to $6,700.” But that’s only if someone files a tax return. The IRS estimates that nearly 9 million people don’t file taxes each year, meaning local residents could be missing out on these income-boosting tax refunds. On top of that, about 20% of North Carolinians who qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit don’t claim it.
Stone wanted to make it clear that while those who’ve already filed aren’t able to file again, if someone hasn’t filed, they might not know what they’re missing out on. “There’s a lot of single moms out there with young kids, and maybe they hadn’t had a job that they had a W2 with or enough earned income to file taxes, but they can get those child credits and that can be money to pay for childcare,” she said. Barrett said something similar in the release. “Maybe folks are working seasonal, parttime, temporary, or gig jobs and don’t make enough that they are required to file taxes,” he said. “They may be missing out on thousands of dollars in flexible cash payments for themselves and their families. Congress created these credits to help them make ends meet. Pisgah Legal doesn’t want them to leave that money on the table. Our trained staff and volunteers will fill out the paperwork with them at no cost.” With Stone in Waynesville and
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