Tulsa Responds

PLEASE forward this blog to anyone you know that may be in a dire situation job-wise and/or financially challenged. It’s a scary position to be in, but we are Tulsa Strong, and there are many great people in our city eager to help each other!

Here are my questions for Tulsa Responds Executive Director, Marcela Swenson:

1. Please explain what Tulsa Responds is and how see you help the community.

Tulsa Responds helps low-income households access public benefits by offering personalized assistance throughout the application process for benefits, including SoonerCare, Health Insurance Marketplace plans, and SNAP. Additionally, we offer free tax-filing services to eligible households. Our goal is to provide these services at no cost, enabling low-income families to avoid paying for a tax preparer and maximize their refunds.

2. What are your biggest challenges in helping families, and is there anything our readers can do to help?

Our benefits enrollment team is expanding outreach efforts to support families impacted by the unwinding of the Public Health Emergency. Many families in Oklahoma are losing SoonerCare coverage without awareness, often discovering this when seeking medical care and facing access challenges. Our focus is on proactively reaching out to identify these families and ensure they receive necessary enrollment assistance.

We’ve noticed that some families aren’t aware of their eligibility for free tax filing services. This oversight leads to missed opportunities for claiming child tax credits and saving money on tax preparation fees.

We strive to connect with families through word-of-mouth referrals and partnerships with community organizations, meeting them where they are to provide the support they need.

3. Are you available to help families outside of Tulsa?

Tulsa Responds can help households outside of Tulsa enroll in SoonerCare. Still, the rest of our services are focused on Tulsa County, and we prioritize households in the TPS catchment area.

4. Can you please give us an example of a family you have helped?

Kathryn Murphy and her 4-year-old daughter, Gracie, recently received an internet hotspot after filing their taxes with us for free. Clients can choose to receive a benefits screening during their tax filing appointment, which may determine their eligibility for other public benefits or services. Kathryn learned about her qualification for a free hotspot for home internet access through her participation in the benefits screening during her recent tax appointment.

QUOTE: “I’ve been going to TR for years for free tax filing; at least three years, they’ve done my taxes for me. It’s always really quick and very polite. They did my taxes this year, and this is the first time I’ve left crying because of issues with the child tax credit. They tried hard for me even though it didn’t work out. Still, I left with a bunch of extra knowledge and resources.

At the time, I was beside myself and went home with all the information. They followed up, sent me messages, and asked if I was okay and if I still needed help. They contacted me to see if I still needed help with internet service, and they helped me get a hotspot. I didn’t know how my daughter would do her work for school. They were able to hook me up with a hotspot for free. I was getting ready to shut off my services because I recently lost my job.

I ended up calling back because my SoonerCare had been canceled, and I forgot to renew. I got a letter in the mail. I was so confused and didn’t want to stay on the phone all day long again. When they sent me the reminder text, I decided to call and ask. We looked up my SoonerCare, and they told me right away that my coverage had been reinstated.

I also spoke with them about unemployment, and they were able to tell me where to go for unemployment assistance. It was so nice to have someone hear me and have someone’s time. I’ve stuck with them for years, and it was my cousin who referred me. All you have to do is show up for your appointment, and they help you. It makes a difference when you can speak with a live person. It’s hard when you can’t see the person. It’s literally just a couple of miles from my house, so I could just pop in if I needed to. They are so welcoming. It was helpful to have their number in my contact list. If they don’t know how to do something, they surely know someone who might. It’s a good resource to have.”

5. How can our readers get more information and see if they qualify for services?

Families can find out their eligibility for public benefits by visiting our website at tulsaresponds.org or calling us at 918.900.0918 to schedule a consultation with a resource navigator on our team.

Many of our clients don’t realize that if they didn’t file their taxes for previous years, they still have the opportunity to do so, and they stand to benefit greatly from filing their taxes. We estimate that 20% of Tulsans who are eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit don’t file their taxes because they don’t make enough money to owe taxes, but they don’t realize that they’re missing out on credits and refunds owed to them. Most households with children qualify for that tax credit, plus the child tax credit, which, depending on the year they didn’t file, is $2,000 or more per child. Tulsa Responds can file taxes as far back as 2018, so if you have children and didn’t file your taxes for any of those years, come see us between June 3rd and September 30th. It could be like finding hundreds of dollars under your couch cushions!