LYNCHBURG, Va. – If you live in central Virginia, there’s a new fund dedicated to helping people behind on their water bill.
The Interfaith Outreach Association in Lynchburg created a water bill relief fund on Monday and has collected about $3,000 so far.
The association is accepting donations online via PayPal or you can mail a check to 701 Clay St. Lynchburg, Virginia 24504 with “water bill relief” in the memo.
Executive director Shawne Farmer said she’s seen bills in the $400 range.
“We became very concerned when we saw that there were over a thousand households in Lynchburg that were behind on their water bill with over what I believe is $200,000 being owed to the city and we saw there were a lot of people in the community that wanted to help,” said Farmer.
Interfaith Outreach isn’t new to supporting people in need but since the pandemic, it’s kicked up a notch.
Farmer told 10 News they had to give staff more hours in order to double the amount of staff on shift to answer calls and help more people.
Farmer also mentioned there aren’t a lot of community resources offering water bill assistance and with a cut to unemployment payments and the eviction moratorium over, there will be a greater demand.
“We do hope that people who have a balance on their water bill will reach out to us sooner than later and not wait until the end of August because funds that we have are on a first come first serve basis,” Farmer said.
If you’re in Central Virginia and behind on your water bill, call 434-846-6098 to begin the screening process.