Committee Cuts Macon Helps Funding

By Misty Green

Many citizens of Macon County voiced their disappointment after learning about the decision of the budget committee that took place in a meeting held on March 25th, with the word on the street being that the budget committee voted to cut funding to MACON HELPS, with District 1 Commissioner Phillip Snow and District 10 Commissioner Helen Hesson being the only two who voted to keep the budgeted funds as was submitted for approval.

District 1 Commissioner Phillip Snow confirmed the majority of the budget committee did vote no on approving the Macon Helps budget, further stating, “They (the commission budget committee) are going to make them come back and explain their operation for the third time in a year.”

Macon Helps is a non-profit corporation (501c), and despite the name, non-profits can and do sometimes make a profit. Unlike other forms of business, non-profits aren’t designed to make money for owners or shareholders, instead, they are formed to serve a government-approved purpose… And in this case, helping the citizens of Macon County in a variety of ways.

After former Macon Helps employee Jean Miles learned of the budget committee’s decision, she stated, “The help for cancer patients alone should be reason enough for more funding.” Macon Helps representative Pam Brummitt stated in the February 5th meeting, “We have a terminal illness program, where we do $20-a-trip gas cards to help with transportation costs for those taking treatments when you bring us the receipts.”

Returning to face the Macon County Budget Committee on April 1, the Lafayette City Meeting Hall was filled with Macon Helps concerned citizens lining the back two rows of seats, and the first item on the agenda, just happened to be, Other Local Welfare Services – Macon Helps. 

For many years, Macon Helps has been a staple place to be able to hand down people’s unneeded items and share possessions with others for free, yet these freely received items are then sold to the public in the thrift store, generating a profit.

Like any business, a nonprofit must cover operating costs and pay its employees, keep the lights on, and expand, and sometimes the nonprofit organization needs to generate revenue that exceeds the amount of its expenses, resulting in a profit.

According to the mission of Macon Helps, donated items are sold at thrift store prices, and proceeds from the sales are used to buy food, pay utility bills for needy individuals living in our area who cannot afford such, and other areas to help those in need.

Macon County Mayor Steve Jones explained, “This was a budget meeting, and this is the committee that goes through each one of the budgets, and that most everything they do right now is tentative until we get all of the budgets in, and then they will put it together and see what we can do, and of course, it always deals with how much money you have got and what you can do, and we have got a lot of requests this year and a lot of things that we are going to have to deal with.”

The Macon County Budget Committee consists of Helen Hesson, Billy Wilmore, Jeff Hughes, Barry King, Wendell Jones, Justin Dyer, Phillip Snow, and Dan Hill.

After approving the budget meeting minutes from 3/25/24, Mayor Jones stated this was the budget committee meeting, and that he had requested Macon Helps representatives to be present at the Legislative Body to be held at 6:30 the same evening.

“This is your decision as to what you want to do, but this is their budget request, this is what you do every yea” Mayor Jones said, “I don’t know what else you want them to do… You are going to have to tell them what you want for Pam to be able to get it put together… Is there anything that I am missing or that you would like to know.”

“The only thing I’ve got is,” District 7 Commissioner Barry King spoke up, “Is they do a great job… I mean, they help lots and lots of people in Macon County, the only thing I am after is, is there any way we can get two Saturdays a month open… If we have got to put extra money in the pot, I’m all for that… But as many people in Macon County that need help… They do a lot and all the churches around here do a lot… but, a Saturday from 9 to 3 would be great, I mean you do not have to stay ten hours a day, and that’s the only thing I am after.”

“I would like to see a breakdown of what is going in and what is going out,” District 5 Commissioner Dan Hill exclaimed.

“A financial statement of some sort,” District 4 Commissioner Justin Dyer agreed.

Mayor Jones said, “They may have something for you tonight.”

“I do,” was heard among the audience, and the commissioners were then handed some documents.

Stepping to the podium to address the committee, Pam Brummitt said, “Well, the Saturday deals, we would have to hire four people, and to be honest I just don’t know if it would be worth it,” she confessed.

“Wouldn’t it be worth trying,” Barry King said, “Couldn’t you try it out,” he pleaded, “For one year.”

“Could I do what,” Brummitt asked? “Couldn’t you try it out…”

“Where am I going to find an employee,” Brummitt asked.

“There are plenty of people in Macon County that would put in an application,” was heard among the crowd.

“I am having trouble with staffing now,” Brummitt responded, and Mr. King agreed that he understood.

“We stay open late on Thursdays and we have from 5 to 7 working people that show up between 3 and 5 o’clock,” she said. 

“The only thing is, I would like to see it try to help MORE people that’s got to work during the day and don’t get off before three o’clock,” King affirmed. “And there are temp services up here,” King advised.

“Delane (Vester) wants to say something,” Brummitt said and stepped to the side.

“I know some of you know who I am, and I have been in the county since 1973… In order for us to open on Saturdays, we would have to hire more people… The reason we don’t open on Saturdays, well one reason, is that we would have to pay more and it would take at least four more employees because we would have to give our regular employees a day off during the week… We have a storage bin that is easily accessible from the street where people can make their donations… We also have an issue on Saturday afternoons with people bringing their leftover yard sale and dumping it on us and if we can’t use it then it has to be taken to the dump ourselves… What we can do right now, is we can bring all of this before the board, and will consider it, but cannot promise anything.”

“It ain’t the donation part I am worried about,” Barry King stated, “It’s the ones that need to go in your store and buy stuff is the ones that I am concerned with… And I know there is a temp service up here.”

“You pay $2 (extra) on the hour up here just to go through them, why bother,” Brummitt said.

“Even just a half a day,” District 5 Commissioner Dan Hill said, “Adjust hours in the week or take a half a day on one of your weekday hours… Try it out a certain amount of time and see if it works.”

“Again,” Vester remarked, “The board will set what we will do.”

“Is this right, that ya’ll have $318,000 in a checking account,” District 9 Commissioner Wendell Jones asked. “Yes,” she agreed.”

“That’s in a checking account… in Macon Helps… That’s not helping,” Commissioner Jones continued. 

“When we shut down for the pandemic, Macon Helps paid three salaries every day to do the food… I mean, you can’t run on $100,000… How long would that last… I don’t think $300,000 is a lot of money,” Brummitt stated.

“Donations are donations,” Vester said, “And we can only use donations for applied assistance… Anything else that we need, we pay for with the money that is made in that store… We have four full-time and four part-time employees.”

“If you want them to add people to work on Saturdays,” Mayor Jones stated, “then what I suggest is that you pass this budget, and if they want to bring back a figure if their board will say they can open on Saturdays for a certain amount, then can bring it back to you and you can say yes or no.”

“What, to give them more money,” was heard among the crowd.

“That’s what Barry was saying,” Mayor Jones explained, “If they would be willing to open it on Saturdays he would be willing to give them more money.”

“The budget that is here, do you want to pass it or not,” Mayor Steve Jones asked.

“I make a motion to leave it like it is,” Wendell Jones stated and was seconded by Phillip Snow, and the rest unanimously approved.

Although Macon Helps passed the budget committee meeting, their time in the hot seat was not over for the evening as District 8 Commissioner Bobby Ray King had previously asked Mayor Jones to place his name on the agenda to discuss Macon Helps during the Committee of the Whole meeting.

Commissioner Bobby Ray King explained his position was inquiring about the six acres of land that Macon Helps owns on Hwy 52 ByPass across the road from the Health Department, and was seeking answers to exactly what the $50k+ in county funding goes to pay, considering Macon Helps takes thousands of dollars and hands it over to a cause in THEIR name.

“Last year we gave them $50,000 plus, where did that money go,” Bobby Ray asked.

“The money that we give them is set up to go for payroll,” Mayor Jones stated.

“Is it going to pay on the land they own out on the bypass,” King added, “Who pays for that.”

“They pay for it,” Mayor Jones stated.

“What we make from the store, pays for that land,” Ms. Vester affirmed. 

“I was just seeing all that money ya’ll give to different people, $1,000 check given here, a $3,000 check there and it is the taxpayer that has given you the money in general,” Bobby Ray King said, “We are giving you the money, so that you can give them the money, and the taxpayers are the givers.”

“That’s applied assistance,” Vester said.

“Last I checked, the body can appropriate money, but we can’t tell them how to use it,” one commissioner stated.

“Exactly,” Vester agreed.

“I got an idea, while we are all here and are grown adults, why don’t we lay it on the table of what we have got against Macon Helps,” Commissioner Michael Slayton asserted, “Tip-toeing questions around here… What’s next churches,” he shouted.

“Let’s move on,” Mayor Jones directed, “It’s the Macon Helps Board members who have the control of the money, we can’t tell them how to use it,” Jones said.

After the meeting, the Macon Helps Board released this statement, “Macon Helps began purchasing the property in December 2018 with the intentions of building a new building to help the citizens of the county and to decrease the expense on our budget of keeping up an outdated building. We have nothing to hide. The purchase is a matter of public record, and at some point in the future our intention is to build a new facility.”