Welfare

I have never been to a Department of Transitional Assistance office and was not sure what to expect, I did not have the phone number and did not know where it was. To start this adventure I called 411. I first spoke to an automated operator that had no idea what I was saying so the machine put me through to a real live operator. I asked the operator for the phone number to the Welfare office, she asked where, I said I do not know, she then gave me a list to choose from. I called the office, a woman answered the phone, I asked her for the address of the office, and she gave it to me along with directions and hours of operation, 9am-5pm. I then asked if there was public transportation. The women I spoke with gave me the bus stop location in Lawrence and then gave me directions by foot from the bus stop to the office. I asked how far of a walk she replied about a block away from the stop. So far this is a good experience, I received the information I needed and it was given to me in a calm pleasant voice. I now know how to get there by car or bus.

I chose to drive to the DTA office, I identified the office by a hanging sign, it was on the first floor of an old mill building. I found free parking right where the receptionist told me. I parked and walked to the front door where there were some middle aged men smoking cigarettes. I held the door open for two Hispanic men one older with a cane being accompanied by the younger about twenty-eight years old; it looked like the man’s son. I walked through another door then down a corridor to the end of a line that started at the reception desk, I was about five consumers away and was asking myself what I am sure many before me have asked, “I wonder if I am eligible for services.” At the front of the line there was a sign in English and in Spanish that stated, please wait to be seated. I waited in line for about five minutes accepted an application from one of the three receptionists then took a seat in one of the forty black plastic chairs. Two of the receptionists were bilingual. I did fill out the application but took a look, it seemed a little long because of the details but overall not to complex. After seeing the receptionist people sat and waited for their name to be called by a DTA worker. On the side of the reception window, there was a separate window labeled EBT, which is short for Electronic Benefit Transfer. I spoke with the women at the window and asked her what EBT was she responded by stating it is a debit account that food stamp benefits and/or cash assistance benefits are held in and they can be accessed by a plastic debit card.

The people I observed were mostly Hispanic, some Caucasian and one Asian family. There were thirty to forty adults about 14 children mostly under the age of eight. I then realized that the majority of the people were women with their children, I wondered if these children had involved fathers.

Some people waited patiently some did not but all waited to be called by a DTA worker or to be called to the EBT window. Some client had papers in their hands, no doubt personal information about their life, where they work or not, how much they get paid or not, current or past services, medical history and more. People’s demeanor appeared different some were talking, some smiling, most were just sitting neutral. One women was angry about waiting and was letting everyone know about it, once she finished her business I heard her say “thank you very much” in a genuine way. I observed other people not waiting in line but just walking in through the front doors past the line and to a phone stationed on the wall with a list of DTA workers names and extensions beside it, apparently these people had workers already. When a DTA worker came out from behind a locked door he or she would call a name and that person/s would follow that worker into the other side, behind the door. Out of the workers I observed calling names there were four Caucasian one male in a wheel chair two middle aged female and one Hispanic male in his thirties. The workers seemed nice, some smiled and said hello when greeting the next applicant.

It has been about fifteen minutes now and I just eyed the two Hispanic men that came in before me, the older man with the cane just moved to the only padded chair in the room. I saw a younger Hispanic mother trying to fill out her application while her four-year old daughter is relentlessly pulling at her sleeve. She kept her calm and handled the situation in a loving way picking up her daughter, holding her all while trying to fill out that application.