By DOUG WILSON
Herald-Whig Senior Writer
Poverty is on the rise in Western Illinois and Northeast Missouri.
John and Sandra Taylor of Nebo know the feeling.
John, 50, suffered two heart attacks last May and cannot do the physically demanding work he previously did at Carnes & amp; Sons Trailer World in Pittsfield. Sandra's job at Stark Brothers Nurseries does not bring in enough to pay their mortgage and all the other bills, but is enough to disqualify the couple from general assistance.
"We have no medical insurance and bills are nearing $200,000," Sandra Taylor said.
When Taylor suffered another heart attack in September, it led to his application for Social Security disability payments being suspended for several months.
"Now we are being told the adjudicator for the Social Security determination won't even look at this case again until mid-December," Sandra Taylor said.
"In the meantime you're waiting on their decision, you get farther and farther behind with the bills.
"The stress is overwhelming. You have worked your whole life to get what little you have, only to face the fact that you will likely lose everything and there is nothing you can do about it because these government agencies won't get off their butts to do the right thing."
Yet she praises the Quincy Community Outreach Clinic and the Two Rivers Council in Pittsfield for helping with health care needs and bills respectively.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau the poverty level is considered $17,330 for a family of three with two adults and a child under 18. Yet a family of three with one parent and two children only goes to $17,346 -- leaving only $16 more to cover the higher child care expenses a single parent might expect.
In the past year agencies that help people in financial difficulties have seen a big change.
"We're now serving 437 families and that jumped 34 families in the last month," said Lillian Bowen, secretary treasurer of the Barry Food Pantry.
The pantry assisted 46 families in the first month when it opened seven years ago. In the past two years, Bowen has seen several people who would previously have been considered part of the middle class, forced to seek assistance.
"One man who lost his job and is getting unemployment has been coming in for food. He's beside himself because he doesn't want to come in. We told him not to go without or let his kids go without," Bowen said.
The anonymous food recipient is one of many families led by 40- to 50-year-old men who have lost their jobs and may be working for much less.
Bowen is among those who believe the poverty level cannot be reduced down to a figure based on income and the number of people in a household.
A new poverty formula created by the National Academy of Science would use non-cash government aid, transportation costs, child care expenses and geographic living costs in addition to income.
Statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau show that Scotland County, Mo., has the lowest median income in the region with less than $34,000. Most counties in Northeast Missouri and West-Central Illinois have median incomes of between $34,000 and $40,000. Five counties -- Adams, Brown and Hancock in Illinois and Pike and Ralls in Missouri -- have median incomes of more than $40,000.
Those who come into contact with people who are financially struggling say the Census figures seem too detached and impersonal. They see lots of people who are hurting.
Jacqueline Ebeling, superintendent of the Lewis County C-1 School District in Ewing, Mo., sees signs that poverty is increasing. Forty-seven percent of C-1 students are receiving free or reduced price lunches this year, up 5 percent from last year.
"It has gone up. I know that about 10 years ago it was maybe 35 to 38 percent" getting the free or reduced price meals, Ebeling said.
In addition to the lunch price indicator, Ebeling has seen people who previously had good jobs looking for work. The day after Prairie Farms announced layoffs, the parent of a C-1 student who worked at the Quincy facility came in to apply for work at the school.
Patti Meldrum, executive director of Gamm Incorporated, said financial conditions are easy to see in the traffic count at four full-service career centers -- operated in Hannibal, Kirksville, Moberly and Warrenton. According to the Northeast Missouri Workforce Investment Board, the number of people seeking help at those four centers rose to 86,256 during fiscal 2009, which ended June 30. During the previous fiscal year the centers had 46,203 visits.
Meldrum said this 87 percent increase in traffic has brought more women who want to become nurses and men seeking certification to drive tractor-trailer rigs.
"I can tell you that the people that are coming into our office are not the typical folks we have seen over the last 10 to 15 years. A lot of them are skilled and highly trained, but are unemployed," Meldrum said.
Meldrum takes comfort in providing help for people who are looking for work.
The Taylors say they appreciate the help they're getting, but feel trapped in governmental programs that seem to move in slow motion. Sandra Taylor worries about losing the family home. She said the experiences of the past six months have made her feel "worthless."
Bowen said those who work at food pantries and other assistance programs just want to help and are grateful for the assistance they've received. Local farm groups have donated a beef and a hog in the past year to bolster the pantry's offerings.
-- dwilson@whig.com/221-3372
