Multi County Community Service Agency

Filling the Gap

A mother with COVID, three children, no food, and behind in her rent, called Multi-County Community Service Agency for help, and assistance was there.  Multi-County offers assistance for COVID affected people with utility and rental bills. In fact, they offer help to over 12,000 people a year, spending approximately $75,000 a week for their clients. They are a non-profit and work based on grants and donations from the community.

Lauderdale Economic Assistance Program (LEAP) was started in 1967. As need for assistance in surrounding counties became more evident, LEAP expanded services to five more, fully incorporating these counties in 1978 as the Multi-County Community Services Agency. In 1992, it again expanded its services to include three additional counties. Ronald Collier, Executive Director says, “We are a social service provider offering assistance with utilities, rent, supplemental food programming, and foster grandparents that work with at-risk youth. Foster Grandparents is an Americore program started by Sargent Shriver and his wife, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. People 60 years and older go into the school system and work with special needs youth one-on-one to help the teacher bridge the gap in the learning process. We have 102 foster grandparents in four counties.”

Other programs are offered such as Meals on Wheels – serving 214 meals a day, and over 70,000 a year to people who are home bound. They are providing a cold pack with five meals, deliver on Monday and put in their refrigerators. These meals can be warmed up in the microwave or oven, thus providing them with one hot meal a day. The K-3 Reading Program in Jasper, Lauderdale, and Clarke counties, when foster grandparents work with 200 youth each summer for six weeks, helping those students who can’t pass the 3^rd grade reading exam, is sponsored by Multi-County. Their Weatherization Program weather proofed 150 homes in 16 counties in East Central MS and 8 on the coast. They also have the Partner with Low Energy Assistance Program, Community Service Block Grant, and the Frances W. Davidson Center for Homelessness.

“We believe it makes good sense to be a member of the chamber and have connections and be able to interface with other organizations and learn more about what is going on in the community in reference to business and social events. We collaborate with a number of agencies in order not to duplicate services, and make referrals to other community agencies. We are blessed seeing people get served. We enjoy hearing the stories of people who felt like they had no way out and find themselves living independently and moving forward. We are trying to bridge the gap to help people stay hopeful,” adds Ronald. 

Multi-County Community Service Agency’s Mission Statement: To be a catalyst for growth and development for disadvantaged individuals and an instrument for change in the community, to be a human service provided in the state. Our goal is to empower individuals and communities.  People helping people.

Multi County Community Service Agency
2900 St. Paul St., Meridian, MS