UAB Plans Small-Loan Program for April 27 Tornado Victims

Students at the University of Alabama in Birmingham will distribute about $250,000 in small, forgivable loans to victims of the April 27 tornadoes according to the university.

The UAB Tornado Relief Forgivable Loan Program will offer interest-free loans, typically of $1,000 or less, to people affected by the storms.  The program is to be administered by the UAB School of Business and the UAB Educational Foundation.  Students across UAB will participate and earn academic credit.

The loans will be due after one year, and can be forgiven in whole or in part if the borrower demonstrates need.

Borrowers will be identified through the Long Term Recovery Committee (LTRC), which includes representatives of more than 40 agencies and UAB.

Regions Bank will handle delivery of loans, and the law firm Balch & Bingham will handle loan documentation.

Tornado victims who are interested in applying for a loan should contact any area human services agency, the school said.  Those interested in donating to the program should visit www.uab.edu/uabef.

Review of Disaster Recovery Steps and Update for June

These are the steps outlined by FEMA in the recovery process which occurs after a disaster. 

These steps and information directly reflect the tornado disaster which affected the State of Alabama from the outbreak of tornados occuring on April 27, 2011.

Steps for victims to follow are:

·        File an insurance claim with your insurance carrier (State Farm, Allstate, etc.)

·        Register with FEMA no later than June 27, 2011

·        Once insurance claim is settled, file appeal with FEMA for potential additional grant

·        Apply for SBA loan (no obligation but get loan in process for potential use)

It is important to know that the maximum benefit amount from FEMA is $30,200 which includes insurance claim benefits.

Alternative Housing continues to be an issue in certain areas. Trailers are not allowed in certain areas due to local laws. Some residents are still living in tents and are reluctant to leave even though FEMA trailers will be located less than 10 miles from their land. Local agencies / Faith Based organizations can be key to disseminating information to neighborhoods. There is also a lot of debris left to be removed before trailers can be set up. Project Clean Sweep has started in Jefferson County, Alabama, with three companies hired to clear public areas. Jefferson County has approved the cleanup of private property as well.

State warehouse has been located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Any donation overflow can be sent to that site and then “ordered back” when items are needed. Brooke Fussell with servealabama.gov is monitoring that program. Big ticket items are going to be needed soon (refrigerators, washers, dryers, etc.). Areas need to be careful with donating too much and thereby negatively impacting local economy. Much better to give money so that items can be purchased from local retailers.

Walker County Long Term Recovery Committees (LTRC) (Paul Kennedy) Walker County still in clean up phase but moving closer to recovery and rebuilding. Temporary housing still an issue as many home owners are “kingdom building” and not wanting to temporarily relocate even a few miles away. Debris clean up is still critical issue and there is a major need for big equipment. They also are in need of overnight facilities for volunteers from out of the area. Walker County volunteer agencies active in disasters (VOAD) meets every Monday at 11:30. Any non-profit agency is welcome to attend.

Mid-Alabama Red Cross (Brooke Cochran) Faith Chapel Christian Center shelter is closing as housing was obtained for families at that shelter. Still in initial casework process but they hope to have that wrapped up by mid June.

American Red Cross (Dave Mesojednik) One large shelter still in place in Tuscaloosa. Red Cross transitioning fairly rapidly to long term recovery phase.

Salvation Army (John Stamps) All Salvation Army Canteens have been closed. The distribution center is still open but they have stopped accepting donations. $300 grants are still being distributed. Proof of eligibility (housing structure damage) is required to qualify for this grant.

Hands On Birmingham  (Tree Davidson) Over 4,500 volunteers have been placed with 8,000 hours logged. Debris removal is still priority for volunteers and HOB is working closely with Don Roybal and Project Clean Sweep. Age requirement for volunteers is over 18 if working on debris removal, 15 and up if working in warehouse sorting donations. Please forward any volunteer requests to Tree at 205.251.5849.    

Lutheran Ministries (Ron Turney) will be having case manager training June 17-18 and June 24-25. They are looking for a facility to host the training and provide food. They are planning an extra half day for CAN training as well. Please complete the contact list on the sign in table.

From Cindy Yarbrough with Alabama HUD

• Offering the State of Alabama and other entitlement communities the ability to re-allocate existing federal resources toward disaster relief – HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME programs give the State and communities the flexibility to redirect millions of dollars to address critical needs, including housing and services for disaster victims. HUD is currently contacting State and local officials to explore streamlining the Department's CDBG and HOME programs in order to expedite the repair and replacement of damaged housing; 
• Granting immediate foreclosure relief– HUD granted a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures and forbearance on foreclosures of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured home mortgages;
• Making mortgage insurance available– HUD's Section 203(h) program provides FHA insurance to disaster victims who have lost their homes and are facing the daunting task of rebuilding or buying another home. Borrowers from participating FHA-approved lenders are eligible for 100 percent financing, including closing costs;
• Making insurance available for both mortgages and home rehabilitation– HUD's Section 203(k) loan program enables those who have lost their homes to finance the purchase or refinance of a house along with its repair through a single mortgage. It also allows homeowners who have damaged houses to finance the rehabilitation of their existing single-family home; and
• Offering Section 108 loan guarantee assistance – HUD will offer state and local governments federally guaranteed loans for housing rehabilitation, economic development and repair of public infrastructure;
• Disaster Support Staff - We have HUD staff deployed to the FEMA Joint Field Office and  Disaster Recovery Centers throughout the State.

Learn more here:  http://www.hud.gov/info/disasterresources_dev.cfm

Long Term Recovery Groups Established - June 1, 2011

Birmingham Long Term Recovery Group

POC:  VAL 205-614-1661

Counties:  Blount, Jefferson, Shelby, St. Clair

Jefferson County

May 20 and 27, 2011

·        Rich Bradley attended Birmingham LTRG Meeting at the United Way Building 3600 8th Ave South (Auditorium) 8:30 am.

June 6, 2011 and continuing every Monday from 1:30-3:30pm.

·     Rich Bradley will meet with the Birmingham Long Term Recovery Group at the United Way Auditorium,  3600 8th Ave. S., Birmingham

West Alabama Long Term Recovery Coalition

VAL Susan Zuber 205-258-927

Counties:  - Tuscaloosa, Fayette, Lamar, Pickens, Greene, Sumter, Marengo, Hale, Bibb and Choctaw

            (Preliminary meetings so far.)

Long Term Recovery Group

POC:  VAL Frantz  Cassagnol  205-258-9297

Counties: Colbert, Cullman, Franklin, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Marion, Morgan, Winston

Limestone County

 May 31, 2011 at 11:00am

VAL Frantz Cassagnol met with Limestone VOAD, 419 South Marion St., Athens, AL

VAL Gerald Harfoot 571-340-1562

VAL Domingo Rivera 571-405-1880

Counties:  Calhoun, Cherokee, Dekalb, Etowah, Jackson, Madison, Marshall, Walker, Talladega

Walker County

May 31, 2011

·     Gerald Harfoot and Domingo Rivera met with Walker County LTRC meeting, American Red Cross, 1101 Viking Drive, Jasper, AL

June 6, 2011 and continuing every Monday at 11:30am:

·        Gerald Harfoot and Domingo Rivera will meet with Walker County LTRC meeting, Red Cross, 1101 Viking Drive, Jasper, AL

Etowah County

June 2, 2011 and continuing every Thursday at 9:00am:

·        Gerald Harfoot and Domingo Rivera will meet with Etowah County LTRC, United Way, 605 4th St., Gadsden, 35902

Marshall County

June 2, 2011 and continuing every Thursday at 2:00pm:

·        Marshall LTR, preparation for LTRC meeting,  Marshall County Emergency Management, 3550 Creek Path Road, Guntersville,  AL

Cullman County

June 2, 2011 at 5:30pm:

·        Cullman LTRC Informational Meeting-5:30pm, City of Cullman Civic Auditorium, 2054 2nd Ave. NE, Cullman, AL 35055

Vivian E. Berg

FEMA/VAL

FEMA-1971-DR-AL

JFO, Birmingham, AL

571-439-1560

Dollywood Foundation Provides Tornado Relief

Dollywood Foundation has graciously donated over 6,000 copies of the beloved book, Corduroy to be distributed to children impacted by recent tornados in Alabama.

We would like to make the books available to those who are working with families in impacted areas like Cordova, Pratt City, Concord, Tuscaloosa, Walker, Cullman and other areas.

As members of the Long Term Recovery Committee, we believe that through your dedication and hard work you are reaching children in these areas and would like to offer these books to you.

Please contact Beth Johns at ejohns@uwca.org for details.

Kathy Holland

Project Coordinator/Office Manager

Community Planning and Initiatives

United Way of Central Alabama, Inc.

P. O. Box 320189

Birmingham, AL 35232-0189

Phone: 205.458.2061

FAX: 205.323.2872

e-mail: kholland@uwca.org

website: http://www.uwca.org/

Have You Thought About Checking Your Credit Score?

I was reading an article about checking your credit score and thought that this subject might be of interest to several people who have been through the recent tornado disasters.  This information comes from Bottom Line/Personal.

Best Ways to Check Your Score

John Ulzheimer

By far the most important piece of information about your creditworthiness is your FICO credit score. Today’s lenders and insurance companies rarely dig into the details of a credit report. They typically just check the FICO score -- which can vary somewhat depending on which credit-reporting agency’s data is used -- and judge the applicant based on this score. Even though there are ways to get estimated FICO scores and alternative credit scores for free, there are only two places to obtain your true FICO score, and neither is free...

Fair Isaac, which compiles the FICO score (800-319-4433, www.MyFICO.com. $19.95).

Equifax (866-493-9788, www.Equifax.com, select "Equifax Products," click the "Single Use Products" tab, then select "Complete Report." $39.95).

In May 2010, the US Senate approved an amendment to a financial industry overhaul bill that would give consumers a free look at their credit scores when they are rejected for a loan, credit card, insurance rate or apartment based on their scores.

Meanwhile, several free online credit score estimator tools can give you a reasonable idea where your score likely stands, including...

Bankrate.com (www.Bankrate.com/calculators.aspx, select "FICO Score Estimator" from the "Credit Card Calculators" section).

SmartCredit.com (www.SmartCredit.com, select "Smart Credit Report"). This is the site I work for.

Quizzle.com (www.Quizzle.com).

Be skeptical of "free credit score" offers. Many of these contain hidden costs... and the score provided is unlikely to be a FICO credit score. Each of us is entitled to receive a free copy of a credit report (which does not include a credit score but does give details of your credit history) each year from

AnnualCreditReport.com. To protect yourself from identity theft and incorrect information, scan your report for listings that you don’t recognize or that don’t seem accurate.

Bottom Line/Personal interviewed John Ulzheimer, president of consumer education for SmartCredit.com, a credit information Web site, Atlanta. He formerly worked with credit-rating organizations Fair Isaac (FICO) and Equifax.