Low Income Single Mom. Need ideas for places like the YMCA that give discounts.

[twinklebug]

Sadly it's not lately. As long as I have been here, the same threads pop up and the same people are snarky on them.

Too true & I'm not even sure what snarky means.

OP - Enjoy your kids while their young. It sounds like you're an excellent planner & handle your money well. After a long & nasty divorce YOU and the children need to be reminded of how nice the world is. The government knows what they're doing (OMG - did I say that? ) with the EIC - if you are legally entitled to it, do NOT be afraid to claim it. Many tax programs will automatically check this for you.

I'm a single mom too, still in the divorce process. Unfortunately this year I didn't qualify for the EIC but would have taken it and applied it to our savings toward a house in a heartbeat if I did. It's nobody's place to tell you what to do with the money. Not the government, not your ex's and certainly not ours.

Enjoy your trip in August - we'll be there too!

 

[a_sailor's_wife]

But they could have spend the money on the summer programs she desperately needs and seems to need help paying for.

I guess I consider a WDW vacation where you stay onsite at any of the resorts an expensive vacation. When I was a single parent I could not afford to even do that. I needed all of my money to pay bills and live. For years we went on vacations that were inexpensive. There is just no way I could justify spending thousands of dollars on a vacation if I couldn't pay for things for my own children.

Edited to add that I guess it is no business of mine until she posts about it on a public message board. I am just adding my opinion, just like you are adding yours.

She stated in an earlier post that her family was paying for the trips, not her. Yes, her family could pay for the summer program/camp as well or instead of, but there's nothing wrong with getting a little bit of help to get back on your feet. She's not taking food, clothing, shelter, or education away from the children. If she gets a refund or the EIC she may take those and use them for the summer camps. We all need help at times whether it's from the government or family and friends.

 

[tasha99]

Who said vacation HAS to be expensive?

Did I miss a post where the OP said she was paying for a deluxe resort while getting food stamps, section 8 and cash assistance? Didn't think so. If her family wants to send her on vacation, what business is it of yours? None.

I agree. People are acting like getting a big tax refund is the same as applying for welfare. It is a form of government assistance, of course, but you get it for working AND filling out your tax form. I guess you could choose not to take it, but I don't see that making a big difference in our national debt.

Same with things like YMCA or Parks Services scholarships--most of those are for people who aren't under the poverty level, just under the average income which is where most working single parents are.

I took my kids to WDW on the free dining special last year. It was awesome and a vacation they will always remember. We're just going camping this year, but we are paying into a cruise for next year (I'd like to have it paid off by tax time next year and I plan to pay for the airfare for us with some of my refund). I suppose there are those who think that's in bad taste, too.

Maybe my advice has been too adversarial for some people's tastes (some one criticized me for advising to claim the younger kids). In an amicable divorce, it wouldn't be necessary to go for everything you can. My divorce was far from amicable--I got no child support for a year, then when it finally got court ordered, he didn't pay it until I had his wages garnished. He charged his atty fees to MY visa, and claimed the kids that first year, even though they all lived with me and he didn't pay for their support. Many years later, my ex has not paid for a single thing unless forced (and other than child support, I've never bothered to get anything court ordered--it's easier just to budget for the things he's supposed to contribute to, but won't). In addition, my ex hasn't even bothered to visit our children in eight years, and many a birthday goes by where he just forgets. So I get a big tax refund and blow some of it on a vacation. Maybe I should be wiser and save it all, but if we don't need it for anything else, I don't understand why people are getting so upset about it.

 

[HelenePA]

Okay I get the EIC and not ALL people who can get the EIC get thousands back with that credit. I may have got 70$ should I not go on vacation because the gov't labeled me "low income" which for our area we are NOT low income.I'm sorry some of you have to write 9k$ checks. I'm sorry you feel your paying for my vacation dont blame us who get the EIC or child credits. Blame the govt. They wont raise min wage to something people can LIVE off of because that means we are going to have to pay more money for stuff to cover the increase. No one wants to pay more right? Where does the answer lie? Not everyone can have a high paying job. If everyone did who would do the lower paying stuff? who would check you out at walmart? who would help you when you need to be sized when buying a bra a vickey secrets? Who would serve your meals when you go out for a nice night out on the town? What would happen to our world as we know it with out those lower job people? Anyone have an easy answer to this? Even if you did have a high paying job with what is happening now who is to say you'll have that job 6 months from now. Once all your savings are gone and you still can't find a job then what? Can't sell that house you can't afford anymore? Oh well out on the street with you and your kids. Who can fix all of this? Who has all the right answers?

 

[disneymom3]

I guess I consider a WDW vacation where you stay onsite at any of the resorts an expensive vacation. When I was a single parent I could not afford to even do that. I needed all of my money to pay bills and live. For years we went on vacations that were inexpensive. There is just no way I could justify spending thousands of dollars on a vacation if I couldn't pay for things for my own children.

Edited to add that I guess it is no business of mine until she posts about it on a public message board. I am just adding my opinion, just like you are adding yours.

I don't care about the whole EIC, tax return whatever part of all of this. What I have a problem with is the OP SAID herself in a post on cost of trips that she is spending $3000 on this trip in Sept. My problem with the then looking for financial help with summer programs etc is that there are a lot of people whose kids won't be going to WDW in Sept because no way do their parents have $3000 to spend on vacation, who are competing for the same $$ as her kids and they may not be able to go to camp because kids whose mom can afford to take an expensive vacation got there first. I am sorry, but that sucks. Tell me that's the way of the world, whatever, but to me, if you can afford a $3000 vacation that does not put you in the need category.

 

[KEVIN M]

If you pay no income tax, and get a refund of $5000.00, that is Government Assistance, as you have posted.
If you pay no income tax, it can be inferred that your income level is very low.
The average family who lives just over the poverty level, but pays income tax, would be hard pressed to be able to afford Disney vacations and cruises after paying for the essentials of daily living. That is a fact of life.
It is the ultimate insult to dual income working families who barely eek out a living but still pay taxes, to see someone who pays NO taxes brag about a $6000.00 refund. It is doubly insulting to see someone recommend using that hand-out as a means to go to Disney.
I paid over $47,000.00 in Federal Income Taxes in 2007. Guess what? No Disney for me this year.

 

[a_sailor's_wife]

Okay I get the EIC and not ALL people who can get the EIC get thousands back with that credit. I may have got 70$ should I not go on vacation because the gov't labeled me "low income" which for our area we are NOT low income.I'm sorry some of you have to write 9k$ checks. I'm sorry you feel your paying for my vacation dont blame us who get the EIC or child credits. Blame the govt. They wont raise min wage to something people can LIVE off of because that means we are going to have to pay more money for stuff to cover the increase. No one wants to pay more right? Where does the answer lie? Not everyone can have a high paying job. If everyone did who would do the lower paying stuff? who would check you out at walmart? who would help you when you need to be sized when buying a bra a vickey secrets? Who would serve your meals when you go out for a nice night out on the town? What would happen to our world as we know it with out those lower job people? Anyone have an easy answer to this? Even if you did have a high paying job with what is happening now who is to say you'll have that job 6 months from now. Once all your savings are gone and you still can't find a job then what? Can't sell that house you can't afford anymore? Oh well out on the street with you and your kids. Who can fix all of this? Who has all the right answers?

Good points! As I pointed out earlier just because someone gets an EIC doesn't mean that they're needy and getting everything out of the government. DH and I recieved the EIC the year he was deployed for 10 months fighting in Iraq. Many, many military families obtain these credits. There are people who do abuse the system, but not all. I think those who obtain these different credits get a bad rap for being "low income" but still trying to enjoy life. Even though we were considered "low income" we certainly didn't use any other type of government assitance and lived within our means and saved in order for us to enjoy trips.

I do however understand people's feelings in that she is getting assitance but taking trips. I also read where she said she's not paying for the trips. I think we just chalk it up to her being blessed to have a family who loves her children and wants her to be able to have fun in the middle of yuck.

 

[JunkyardWillie]

Okay as a taxpayer- what exactly of your tax dollars is she getting?

she is not on public assistance
she is not asking for public assistance

y scholarships, or scholarships for boy scouts, or day camp scholarships do not come from your federal tax dollars. the majority of scholarship money comes from private and corporate donations...not your tax dollars.

Show me a break down of what exactly she is getting thats "YOURS"

Brandy

The OP said she was going to visit the Social Services office for assistance.

Summer Camp is a luxury. Vacations are a luxury. My personal opinion is that $12,000.00 could have been put to better use rather than a few weeks on a luxury vacation, especially on such a low income. Feel free to flame away at me though for expressing MY opinion.

 

[tinker&belle]

I have been reading this and feel torn...

I grew up with a single, working mother. No WDW for us (although I dreamed about it.) We were lucky to have enough milk money for the week (sometimes I remember digging for change just to buy bread or milk. The EIC tax refund was the time when bills got caught up, we got shoes (not the 100 variety ), and we maybe got to choose one new toy or new outfit a year. It was the only time I ever remember going to the mall to choose something I wanted (it was usually something around 40 dollars, nowhere near WDW). The rest of the time I never got to have all the nice little 'extras' all my friends had. The rest of the money my mom put into an account to help us break even the rest of the year (if times were good, if not it caught us up from the last year or paid for medical bills, dental bills, etc)

Fast forward to now...as much as I can remember being the little girl who dreamed of Disney, I cannot see how we could have gone, even with a hefty EIC and mom still could have provided food, shelter, etc. We never had a nice car. I know on the disboards people always talk about their priorities...You must all make more than my mother did, even with 'priorities' there is no way, no how we could have EVER made it to WDW...

I'm glad your children do have opportunity to go to WDW, that being said as a current middle class tax payer, I know how much we pay in tax and it is a little irritating to hear that EIC is being used to pay for nicer vacations than we can afford to take....that being said if you can provide all the basics for your family and still manage a WDW vacation without govt assistance at the poverty line, more power to you.

 

[JunkyardWillie]

If you pay no income tax, and get a refund of $5000.00, that is Government Assistance, as you have posted.
If you pay no income tax, it can be inferred that your income level is very low.
The average family who lives just over the poverty level, but pays income tax, would be hard pressed to be able to afford Disney vacations and cruises after paying for the essentials of daily living. That is a fact of life.
It is the ultimate insult to dual income working families who barely eek out a living but still pay taxes, to see someone who pays NO taxes brag about a $6000.00 refund. It is doubly insulting to see someone recommend using that hand-out as a means to go to Disney.
I paid over $47,000.00 in Federal Income Taxes in 2007. Guess what? No Disney for me this year.

I have to agree.

HelenePA, no easy answers to your questions. A minimum wage increase won't solve the problem because the cost for EVERYTHING will go up. Who do you think will have to pay for the cost of a minimum wage increase? We all will.

A flat tax based on all goods/services purchased would go a long way to solving the problems with the current tax system. Some people getting back every dime of federal tax paid in while others have to pay over 30% of their income simply is not right. It takes away the incentive to work and improve your education, etc. to get a higher paying job.

 

[crisi]

Sorry, but there are a whole lot of people (especially single parents) whose true tax after filing is a negative percentage. If you want to try to change the system, go ahead, but as it is now you have absolutely no say in how I spend the money.

No, but she does have every say to critique your spending in a public forum if you disclose it, at least until the moderators shut down the thread.

Honestly, the usual suspects may be criticizing this behavior, but it consistently amazes me that people would post things like this here and expect nothing but supportive posts. If you put your trips in your sig line, and you post your financial woes, people are going to say "gee, the Poly? and another trip in September?"

 

[ZipaDeeDooDah]

Okay as a taxpayer- what exactly of your tax dollars is she getting?

she is not on public assistance
she is not asking for public assistance

y scholarships, or scholarships for boy scouts, or day camp scholarships do not come from your federal tax dollars. the majority of scholarship money comes from private and corporate donations...not your tax dollars.

Show me a break down of what exactly she is getting thats "YOURS"

Brandy

OMG!!! Exactly what I was wondering!

 

[tasha99]

I just want to say I'm not on "welfare style" government assistance, and I don't use all of my EIC on vacations. * Not even most of it, though it covers the gaps at the end. I'm surprised at the vitriol in this thread, mostly because my info on the EIC was to support the OP in the sense that, hey, single moms without that much money can get to WDW too if that's their priority.

For me, on rare years, the EIC is a necessity, but sometimes, it's a windfall. Read the tax code--you don't have to be all that poor to get it. I could make $40,000/year before I would start paying tax (as the EIC goes down, the Child Tax Credit goes up, as I understand it.) In most parts of the country, that just isn't thatpoor.

*I do consider the EIC to be assistance, but so long as I meet the criteria to claim it, I will.

 

[ZipaDeeDooDah]

Honestly, the usual suspects may be criticizing this behavior, but it consistently amazes me that people would post things like this here and expect nothing but supportive posts. If you put your trips in your sig line, and you post your financial woes, people are going to say "gee, the Poly? and another trip in September?"

True, but please remember that the OP has only been here since January of this year. Isn't she still within her protective, 3-month period of probabation while learning the DIS etiquette?

 

[clh2]

Summer Camp is a luxury.

Sorry I disagree with this statement. Especially for working parents. If it is a day camp, it is the equivalent of day care, and if the mom is working, is a necessity, not a luxury.

The Y-summer camp my DD went to was really day care, but just for the summer.

 

[ZipaDeeDooDah]

Sadly it's not lately. As long as I have been here, the same threads pop up and the same people are snarky on them.

OMG! How silly of me to forget that it was "that" time of year!!!

 

[KEVIN M]

OMG!!! Exactly what I was wondering!

It's not Rocket Science:

1) Family A pays $25,000.00 in Income Tax after all applicable refunds. Net Loss = $25,000.00
2) Family B pays $0 in Income Tax and gets back $6000.00. Net Gain = $6000.00

At its most basic premise, Family A paid $25,000 to the Fed. The Fed paid $6000.00 to Family B.

While Family A did not specifically reach into their collective wallets and give $6000.00 to Family B, you can see the point that many here are trying to make.

Tax credits and refunds (specific to this case - families, not corporations) are intended to benefit those who need it more to sustain at the very least a decent living condition. When Family B goes to the Poly while Family A spends a weekend at the shore, something is wrong.

 

[HelenePA]

It's not Rocket Science:

1) Family A pays $25,000.00 in Income Tax after all applicable refunds. Net Loss = $25,000.00
2) Family B pays $0 in Income Tax and gets back $6000.00. Net Gain = $6000.00

At its most basic premise, Family A paid $25,000 to the Fed. The Fed paid $6000.00 to Family B.

While Family A did not specifically reach into their collective wallets and give $6000.00 to Family B, you can see the point that many here are trying to make.

Tax credits and refunds (specific to this case - families, not corporations) are intended to benefit those who need it more to sustain at the very least a decent living condition. When Family B goes to the Poly while Family A spends a weekend at the shore, something is wrong.

I think family A needs to find out more about credits IRA's ect ect to get some of those tax breaks. Or buget just like all of us type B people do. Do with out stuff we dont NEED. Just because my kids WANT something doesn't mean they get it. I just bought my kids new shoes (nike's if you must know for less than 15$ a pair brand new because they are from last years styles) DD keeps seeing stuff for sketchers I'm not running out and buying her new shoes because she WANTS them. If Family A can't afford 3k$ and has to pay in 25k$ to the govt I can honestly say its not family's b fault. I own my house, we have a car YES ONLY ONE!! We make it work! (we dont get a new one every year we will get one this year because we all wont fit into our lil car anymore) my family wears brand name clothes and I can do this all on 42k$ (add maybe an additional 500$ that we get back from over what we've paid in from income tax) a year... how much would that other family who's writting the 25k$ check to the govt make?? How come I can afford it?? Your right something IS wrong.

 

[KEVIN M]

I think family A needs to find out more about credits IRA's ect ect to get some of those tax breaks. Or buget just like all of us type B people do. Do with out stuff we dont NEED. Just because my kids WANT something doesn't mean they get it. I just bought my kids new shoes (nike's if you must know for less than 15$ a pair brand new because they are from last years styles) DD keeps seeing stuff for sketchers I'm not running out and buying her new shoes because she WANTS them. If Family A can't afford 3k$ and has to pay in 25k$ to the govt I can honestly say its not family's b fault. I own my house, we have a car YES ONLY ONE!! We make it work! (we dont get a new one every year we will get one this year because we all wont fit into our lil car anymore) my family wears brand name clothes and I can do this all on 42k$ a year... how much would that other family who's writting the 25k$ check to the govt make?? How come I can afford it?? Your right something IS wrong.

I pulled the $25K figure out of the sky just to make a point. I was not being income-specific. The point was to answer the question "What money are they getting that is YOURS?"

You did, however, prove my point. You make $42K a year, live a fiscally responsible lifestyle, and you can budget a vacation. Would the same apply if your income was so low as to warrant a $6K refund while paying no taxes?

I'm not going to beat this to death, as it seems you will defend the use of Government Assistance to pay for vacations no matter what is posted here.

 

[KariC]

I think family A needs to find out more about credits IRA's ect ect to get some of those tax breaks. Or buget just like all of us type B people do. Do with out stuff we dont NEED. Just because my kids WANT something doesn't mean they get it. I just bought my kids new shoes (nike's if you must know for less than 15$ a pair brand new because they are from last years styles) DD keeps seeing stuff for sketchers I'm not running out and buying her new shoes because she WANTS them. If Family A can't afford 3k$ and has to pay in 25k$ to the govt I can honestly say its not family's b fault. I own my house, we have a car YES ONLY ONE!! We make it work! (we dont get a new one every year we will get one this year because we all wont fit into our lil car anymore) my family wears brand name clothes and I can do this all on 42k$ (add maybe an additional 500$ that we get back from over what we've paid in from income tax) a year... how much would that other family who's writting the 25k$ check to the govt make?? How come I can afford it?? Your right something IS wrong.

Maybe they're saving more for their retirement and their children's educations?

I don't begrudge anyone summer camps, lunches/breakfasts at their public school, etc., but I do think multiple luxury vacations when you are not also saving is not being financially responsible. I do think saving for a luxury vacation, while also saving for the future and meeting all of your current financial obligations, is being responsible. YMMV And that's where some of us get irritated.

What I really want to know is.....Where in the world can I find relatives to love us so much that they give us free trips to Disney??????