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Home > Blogs > Butler County News and Issues > Archives > 2009 > February > 02 > Entry
Today at the welfare office
On the eighth floor of the Government Services Center in Hamilton Monday, Feb. 2, a steady stream of people trickled in to the office where Butler County workers dole out assistance checks.
No one in the growing line was smiling. The only talking was a woman trying to control her young children.
The recession was being felt on both sides of the counter. This was the first day of work since Butler County Job and Family Services laid off a dozen workers. The line moved quickly, though agency leaders warn the cuts will likely slow down some service delivery.
A Monroe resident named Mark — he asked to not give his last name — came out of the office with a sheaf of papers to fill out. He is applying for food stamps for the first time in his life.
Mark said he is on disability and his wife works for a local automobile dealership that is suffering. “She doesn’t know if she’ll have a job this year or not,” he said.
He used to consider himself middle class, he said, adding “Today there is no middle class, either you’re rich or you’re poor.”
He then boarded the elevator to leave, next a sign labeled U.S. Department of Labor that taunted the steady stream of people queuing up for services.
“Mommy, will we always be on welfare?” the sign read, over a photo of a young child staring up with plaintive eyes. Underneath, it read, “WORK your way up. Give your kids a reason to be proud.”
At this same moment, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland was unveiling his 2010-2011 budget, with more cuts for social service agencies and initiatives meant to create jobs. And federal lawmakers wrangled over the details of an economic stimulus package and whether it would jump-start the economy.
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