This Decorah woman needed help with medical bills. Embrace Iowa gave her a hand up.
Mother of two Jada Bahls-Kargalskiy of Decorah discovered she was “unexpectedly expecting” in June 2022, shortly before her husband was temporarily laid off from work. The emotional roller coaster of surprise, excitement and financial insecurity was further shaken when she suffered a miscarriage a few months later.
The longtime nurse with the federal low-income Head Start program encouraged eligible clients to apply for funds distributed by the Des Moines Register’s Embrace Iowa charitable program, she said. But now she was on the opposite side of the table.
“It kind of came full circle. With my work in Head Start, and people assistance, I would refer them, support them, and help with the application. And then I found myself in need of it too,” she said.
For more than 30 years the Register’s Embrace Iowa campaign has supported families and individuals in need. Supported by the generous contributions of newspaper readers, 16 agencies across the state allocate funds valued up to $750 to help cover a diverse range of financial hardships including medical invoices, car repairs, rent and purchasing necessary appliances.
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In addition to the difficulty of paying off the unexpected emergency room costs, Jada Bahls-Kargalskiy also found the monthly reminder of her family’s loss created an additional emotional burden.
“Continually getting a bill each month reminding us of what could have been was really hard,” she said. “Embrace Iowa provided closure, and helped the healing process, because that bill was paid and not coming every month.”
Embrace Iowa applicants are required to show a gross annual income of 200% or less than the federal poverty guidelines, and once they are approved, the financial grants are paid directly to the creditors.
Viewing the program as both a facilitator and recipient, Bahls-Kargalskiy praised the non-judgmental approach of agency staff. “They're there because they want to help people, and you don't have to feel singled out because they work with these programs all the time. You're not the only person in there that day that needs help,” she said.
Her paperwork was administered by the Northeast Iowa Community Action Corp. that oversees seven counties in the region.
“It was not an intimidating application by any means. It’s really easy. Just write a small synopsis of the amount you are asking for and the reason why,” she said. “It wasn't the super long, extensive application that sometimes health and human services applications can be.”
None of Embrace Iowa’s awards are distributed to the applicants. “There’s no room for misuse, or fraud,” Bahls-Kargalskiy explained. “I did not see the money. I provided an invoice to Community Action and then they sent the check straight to the hospital.”
Bahls-Kargalskiy also lauded the flexibility of Embrace Iowa’s ability to distribute its awards. “There are certain funds like SNAP that just helps for food. Fuel assistance just helps with heating. Embrace Iowa can help so many people with what they actually need help with, like brakes for your car, twin beds for the kids, a mattress, a stove. It's just such a wonderful program because it targets the direct needs of people.” And she added, “It’s more of a ‘hand up,’ than a ‘hand out’.”
How you can help Embrace Iowa
The annual program is available to individuals across all 99 Iowa counties. Contributions will be accepted until Jan 31. 2024, and each pledge made before the end of the year qualifies as a charitable deduction. The fundraising goal for this year has been raised to $400,000.
Online donations can be made at iowacommunityaction.org/about/donate, or checks can be sent to Embrace Iowa, P.O. Box 10611, Cedar Rapids, IA 52410-0611.
Richard Lane is a freelance writer for the Des Moines Register.