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  Geebo 9:00 am on December 28, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Arkansas, charity ( 17 ), donations ( 4 ), food banks, MacKenzie Scott, volunteer   

  Food bank to receive surprise donation from billionaire 

  

  2020 was a particularly difficult year for food banks. Due to the pandemic, most food banks saw an increase in demand for their services by people who were either laid off or furloughed. Now imagine you’re one of these struggling food banks and you find out you’re going to receive a substantial donation from one of the country’s richest people.

  That’s what happened to a food bank in Arkansas after they were contacted by billionaire and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. Scott is the former wife of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and has promised to donate most of her wealth. So far, Scott has donated close to $2 billion to groups that have historically served marginalized and underserved people.

  But you don’t have to be a billionaire to help your local food bank. You can always donate food as the name implies, however, each food bank has specific needs. Please contact your local food bank to see what their most urgent needs are. Please don’t donate the canned goods that have been sitting in your cabinet that have been collecting dust for years. If you’re not going to eat it, the odds are that the food bank won’t need it. What they do need in most cases is nonperishable foods that have a decent shelf life. Peanut butter and canned meats like tuna and ham are preferred.

  If you don’t know what foods to donate, you can always donate money if you can afford it. Most of these organizations are barely scraping by with their operating costs. Most food banks will not receive donations like the one Ms. Scott will be donating to the Arkansas food bank.

  If you can’t donate food or money you could always volunteer your time. Many of the front-line workers at food banks are the elderly and they’re putting themselves at great risk. The more volunteers a food bank has, the less likely it will be that one of their elderly workers will become infected.

  If you want to help your community recover during these trying times, we can think of no better way than helping with your local food bank.

   

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  Geebo 8:00 am on August 5, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Arkansas, Scams ( 1,354 ), unemployment benefits ( 23 ), unemployment scam ( 30 )   

  Scammers file for unemployment in Governor’s name 

  

  Unemployment recipients are receiving a virtual beating right now. If it’s not the additional $600 Federal benefit expiring, it’s the scammers. If you haven’t seen the news, overseas scammers are assailing the unemployment benefits systems of all 50 states. Due to the record number of people applying for unemployment because of the global pandemic, scammers are slipping in through the cracks and applying for benefits under stolen identities. They’ve even applied for benefits under the names of people who are currently employed. This has caused delays for many legitimate unemployment recipients who are currently living hand to mouth.

  It’s gotten so bad in Arkansas that scammers applied for benefits in the Governor’s name and had them approved. In Arkansas, 27,000 unemployment applications are on hold because of how frequent scammers are applying for benefits. Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, the state unemployment office has hired additional staff to help detect scam applications. It makes us ask, what is broken in the state unemployment systems that allow scammers to collect benefits under the names of people who are currently employed? While we realize that the wheels of government turn slowly, we have to wonder how outdated some of the government systems are. That’s not even taking into account people who may have been incorrectly denied for benefits. Who knows how many millions of dollars in benefits have been lost to scammers.

  If you should be receiving unemployment payments but you’re not, check with your state’s unemployment website to make sure they have your correct banking information or address depending on how you receive your payment. If you’re employed and have received unemployment benefits or received a letter that you’ve been approved for benefits, tell everyone. Notify your employer if they haven’t notified you and notify your state’s Department of Labor or regional equivalent. It may take some time and patience to reach someone but it’s important to notify your state right away. Please, do not let it go too long. And whatever you do, don’t spend any of the benefits you may receive as that is considered fraud and could land you in legal trouble.

   
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  Geebo 8:58 am on August 4, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: airport ( 4 ), Arkansas, Little Rock, Puppies ( 9 ), puppy scam ( 37 ), Scams ( 1,354 )   

  Airports do not have pet departments 

  

  The Better Business Bureau is saying that they’ve seen a dramatic increase in the amount of puppy scams that have been happening since the start of the global pandemic.

  If you’re unfamiliar with the puppy scam, it’s when scammers will advertise puppies for sale online but the puppies don’t exist. A good way to tell if an online ad for a puppy is a scam is if the supposed breeder is advertising the puppy for much less than what the breed normally costs.

  Once you’ve paid for the puppy, the scammers will start adding on extra charges. Often they’ll claim it will be for things like special shipping crates or customs fees.

  Recently, the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport in Little Rock, Arkansas has been reporting a number of people calling to speak to the airport’s pet department. Commercial airports like this don’t have pet departments. Often, the scammers will pose as an airport’s non-existent pet department to try to claim additional payment from the scam’s victims.

  This scam starts with the official-looking websites scammers have that make it look like they’re legitimate dog breeders. A great way to see if a breeder’s website is a fake is to do a reverse image search to see if the pictures of the puppies appear anywhere else on the internet. Scammers will take pictures from off of Google Image Search since they don’t have any actual puppies.

  As we always suggest when shopping for a new pet, the best way to protect yourself is to adopt from your local shelter. Many shelters have lists you can sign up for if you’re looking for a specific breed. Not only is this more cost-effective but you’re also helping the shelters continue to in assisting their efforts.

  But if you have your heart set on a certain breed, buy from local dog breeders. Even then, do your research on the breeder to make sure they’re raising their animals humanely. Unfortunately, there are too many ‘backyard breeders’ who are looking to make money quick by selling sick pets.

  Adding a pet to your life is a life-changing event and you should be properly prepared for such a momentous occasion.