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Families First

• You received a letter from DHS saying that your Families First was ending because you did not go to job training when you were scheduled to go.  You immediately contacted your caseworker when you got the letter and left a message.  However, the caseworker never returned your call.  You previously had told your case worker when you signed your PRP that you needed a referral for transportation services to get to the class and you told her again when you got the letter telling you what day you were supposed to go to class.  But you never got a referral for transportation.  Now your Families First has ended and you don’t know how you are going to pay the electric bill.

• You applied for Food Stamps and told the DHS case worker that you also wanted Families First and TennCare.  The case worker told you that your family did not qualify for Families First because you are married to your children’s father and you all live together.  Your children are 12 years old and 3 years old.  You work, but your husband is not able to because he is a disabled veteran.  Your income is very low and every month you cannot pay all your bills, like rent and utilities, much less the car repairs you need.  You are under a lot of stress and your health is suffering.

• You were in a relationship in which you were being physically abused. You and your children no longer live with the abuser. You have a lot of anxiety as a result of the years spent being abused. Plus, your grandmother who has always been there to offer love and support just died suddenly. You have not been able to work consistently because of anxiety and depression. One of your children has severe asthma and you are worried about what will happen because none of you have health insurance. You get a little child support but you and your kids won’t make it unless you work too. You want to work, but right now you need a little help getting back on your feet.
  

TJC represents families who want to apply for or who receive Families First. Families First is Tennessee’s welfare reform program, which provides cash assistance, childcare, job training and transportation assistance for low income families with minor children. Over 134,000 of Tennessee’s poorest children receive assistance through Families First.

TJC helps individual families get Families First so that they have the assistance they need to move toward self sufficiency. On a broader level, TJC uses the experiences of these families to advocate for innovative programs to help all the families receiving Families First assistance. TJC has successfully advocated for several statewide programs that have been nationally recognized for their excellence. For example:

• the Family Services Counseling program, which provides one on one assistance from highly qualified counselors for the families with the greatest disabilities and other barriers to work;
  
• the Customer Service Review program which reviews cases before they are closed; and
  
• the First Wheels program which provides low cost car loans so that families can have transportation to work.

TJC also advocates for federal policies which allow Tennessee to effectively operate these innovative programs and which give low income families the greatest opportunities to become self sufficient.

Click to read TJC Families First stories

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