Supplemental Emergency Assistance Program

SEAP is a coalition of 56 Quad City agencies organized to provide crisis financial assistance. Our purpose is to assist individuals and families during times of crisis. The emergency funding provides access to a wide variety of items and services such as but not limited to housing and utility assistance medical equipment and medication and educational and employment supplies. Stabilization self-sustainability and rapid resolution of crisis situations are goals of the program. When community resources are not available caseworkers contact SEAP to check eligibility which is determined by the past use of SEAP funds. Clients are able to access up to $300 per 12 month period. Funds for rent deposits and utilities are available once every 5 years. Caseworkers present the crisis and the stability plan. Checks are mailed to the vendor or the agency the day the application is received which fulfills the mission of SEAP to quickly provide emergency assistance. In 1989 social service personnel met to discuss how to help members of the Quad City community address emergency or crisis needs. The individuals involved in the discussion outlined the avenues that already existed in the community as well as outlining gaps in service. The resultant consensus was that there were many occasions when the existing funds were not available either because of restrictions on the ability of persons in crisis to access those funds restrictions on the ability of agencies to access their funds for out-of-program needs or because funds for particular resources were just not available anywhere in the community. This group applied for a grant through The Doris and Victor Day Foundation to set up the Supplemental Emergency Assistance Program (SEAP). The grant was approved and the orientation to SEAP was held on January 12 1990. The program began the following week. In 1993 a community organization known as Information and Referral Service was in the process of being phased out. The United Way of the Quad Cities approached SEAP to function as the mechanism whereby emergency assistance funds could be distributed to families and persons in crisis as had been done by Information and Referral Service. In September of 1993 SEAP received a monies from the United Way of the Quad Cities and funding from that body has continued to this day. In 2002-2003 SEAP began the process of becoming recognized as exempt under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code said recognition being determined by the IRS in September 2003. This allowed SEAP to expand its ability to access further grant funding and thereby expand its ability to need the emergency needs of Quad City residents.

The mission of SEAP is to provide assistance through member agencies to quickly help meet the crisis or extraordinary needs of individuals and families of the Quad Cities who have exhausted all other means of available financial aid.