The City of Henderson is initiating a new program this holiday season to help residents pay utility bills, a plan that came about because of many residents’ giving hearts.
Henderson City Clerk Jessa Brandon’s office is next to the kiosks in the Municipal Building where residents pay their utility bills. Brandon said last year she heard crying from a resident who couldn’t pay all of her utility bill.
After the woman left, another resident who had heard the conversation paid the remainder of the woman’s bill, Brandon said. She added that acts of kindness like this can regularly occur in the bill-paying area, and she’s been witness to them.
Brandon thought tapping into Henderson residents’ generosity during the holiday season would be a good idea, so at Oct. 27’s city commission meeting, she pitched her idea, which she calls the “Spirit of Henderson.” City commissioners all were in favor of the program.
In this pilot program, people who need help with utility bills can come into the Municipal Building’s bill pay area and sign up. Those seeking assistance must have encountered certain challenges or have certain conditions, including:
- Hospitalization
- Injury or disability
- A recent change in job status
- A loss of immediate family member
- A fluctuation of $100 or more in overall utility bill
The program will be carried out using ornaments on a Christmas tree that is set up in the Municipal Building’s bill paying area. Brandon said that 25 ornaments with amounts of money needed—corresponding with those who’ve signed up—will be placed on the tree. Residents who want to help can pick an ornament off the tree and pay for that at a kiosk.
The ornaments will not contain any personal information and just the amount that is needed, Brandon said.
She said those who need help can sign up at a kiosk or at the city clerk’s office from now through Nov. 30. Those who want to help can make payments from Dec. 1 through Jan. 1, Brandon said.
Though there will be 25 ornaments on the tree that represent 25 people with needs, Brandon said that the city will take applications for all who need help, which could be more than 25. Once needs are paid for, those who aren’t on the tree will be added. Brandon said there’s no certainty that all the utility needs will be paid for.
