Empire Emergency Fund Provides Critical Support To Area Residents

Far too many people are one or two bad breaks away from being in a really tough spot, even in a county known for pockets of extreme wealth.

“At least 50 percent of the full-time residents of Leelanau County are either on the precipice of situational poverty, or they’re already in situational poverty,” Gerry Shiffman tells The Ticker. “All it takes is one thing – it could be as serious as a death in the family, or something as benign as a vehicle breaking down.”

That’s why Shiffman, president of the Empire Area Community Center (EACC), is proud of everyone who continues to support the EACC’s emergency fund, launched in 2012 to help area residents who need a leg up. Since its inception, the fund has delivered more than $300,000 in financial assistance to more than 275 individuals or families.

Anyone within the EACC’s service area (the “Greater Empire” community of Empire, Glen Arbor, Burdickville, Maple City, Lake Ann and Honor) is eligible for assistance. The fund works by directly tending to the most pressing needs of those in dire straights.

“No one who needs assistance has ever gotten cash from us,” Shiffman says. “We pay outstanding bills, and we even sometimes negotiate settlements so they kick in a little bit as well in the form of discounts.”

To protect privacy and preserve dignity, Shiffman says, the applicants don’t apply themselves. They are nominated by someone else in the community. Everyone should be on the lookout for those in need, he says, even if that need isn’t readily apparent.

“That's where the program becomes incumbent upon we as neighbors to look at our neighbors and say: Are you having some hard times? Are you have some issues right now? Have those uncomfortable conversations,” Shiffman says. “And then when you discover that, you get a nomination form and you get some outstanding bills from them and you submit it. And we go do due diligence to figure out what they need to get back to sustainability.”

Most of the money for the fund is raised via an ongoing series of community concerts put on by local musicians. Typically, though not always, these concerts are held on the last Sunday of the month at various venues. The best way to know when and where they’re being held is to monitor the EACC’s calendar, Shiffman says, though the group also puts posters up around town.

Shiffman cannot express enough thanks to the musicians who put on these shows, many of whom – including Chris Skellenger, Norm Wheeler, John Kumjian, Andre Villoch and others –  have been lending their talents for years.

“There are not enough words to express the gratitude and appreciation that I have for them,” Shiffman says. “They are making life-changing contributions to myriads of people simply by showing up and doing what they love.”

Shiffman is also appreciative of those who have received assistance themselves, as they are among the first to turn around and help others in need, he says.

“These are some of the finest people that walk this earth. They are the first ones to show up at the sign of trouble to assist. They give you the shirt off their back. They are salt of the earth people,” he says. “That's just who they are.”

Shiffman hopes that other communities will follow the EACC’s lead. Just last year, the Mills Community House in Benzonia adopted the EACC fund’s structure and launched its own program.