upended people’
s lives. April and May saw 
an increase in requests for help from the 
Roof Over Head program, which helps 
with rent payments. Requests for trans-
portation assistance also increased as peo-
ple who relied on public transportation or 
rideshare apps to get to work began to feel 
unsafe with their options. 
“If we spend the next six months also 
attracting more returning citizens, then 
the year will be our highest by far, I’
m 
sure, for grantees,” Schwartz said. 
Because of the unique nature of Here to 
Help, prospective grantees need to meet 
several requirements before receiving 
assistance. For example, if they’
re able to 
work and they’
re applying for a grant, they 
must be employed and able to show pay 
stubs for the last four weeks. As Schwartz 
says, the organization gives “hand-ups,” 
not hand-outs. 
“We can’
t give someone help with back 
rent if they don’
t have any income because 

next month they’
re still going to need 
rent, and where are they going to get it 
from?” Schwartz said. “So we look at what 
we’
re doing as an investment in the grant-
ee — that they’
ll be fine moving forward.” 
Not all the same requirements apply 
to grantees for the Returning Hope 
to Returning Citizens program. They 
do hope to see that applicants have an 
income, but “we don’
t list any particu-
lar requirements on that page, per se,” 
Schwartz said. “We just want them to 
email us and we’
ll take it from there.” 
Here to Help used to work with state 
agencies and local nonprofits to con-
nect with people who qualified for their 
grants. Schwartz said they’
d go through 
what he calls the “qualified advocate” 
— a Department of Health and Human 
Services employee or a social worker. But 
several years ago, Here to Help decided 
to put their grantee requirements in plain 
text on their website. Now grantees can 

email Schwartz and Here to Help staff 
directly to apply for assistance. 
“I can usually tell once we get that 
initial email with the initial information 
whether we’
re going to be able to help or 
not, and nine times out of 10, if they qual-
ify … we’
ll be able to assist them,” he said. 

RETURNING CITIZENS
Lionel Smith of Detroit is one of those 
people who reached out to Here to Help. 
He was connected with the organiza-
tion last summer through the Center for 
Employment Opportunity to apply for 
a grant through the Working Cars for 
Working People program. A returning 
citizen himself, Smith had found a job but 
couldn’
t yet afford to purchase a car. 
Working with Here to Help couldn’
t 
have been easier, Smith said. There were 
less than two weeks between the day he 
initially applied for the grant and the day 
he got to drive his car off the lot. And he 

continued on page 16

 JULY 23 • 2020 | 15

Kimberly Miller and 
her grandson with 
their new ride from 
Here to Help.

ALEXANDER CLEGG/JEWISH NEWS

HERE TO HELP