The Town of Needham Gift of Warmth program has been helping residents who need assistance with utility bills for more than three decades. But rising costs and fewer donations are jeopardizing the town’s ability to keep the program going.
“We’re concerned it may not be a thing we can continue to do after this year,” said Tiffany Benoit, assistant director of public health. The Gift of Warmth account has run a deficit for four of the past five years. In November 2023, it had a balance of $15,000, and in November 2024, $11,992.
The program is entirely funded by donations, but awareness and contributions have been dropping. One reason is that Needham’s religious congregations had been steady contributors and there are simply fewer of them. Needham’s Presbyterian Church closed in 2020, the First Baptist Church in 2023, and Grace Lutheran Church in 2024. St. Bartholomew’s Catholic Church and St. Joseph’s Catholic Church consolidated in 2024. These churches previously provided a large chunk of the donations for the Gift of Warmth account. “We have had a good partnership with churches in the past,” said Benoit.
Yet the number of Needham residents asking for assistance with utility bills has gone up since 2020. “People aren’t able to pay bills,” said Benoit. The state has a program for a one-time payment of $400 toward utilities, but for many that isn’t enough. Rising costs in other sectors such as food and gas means some residents have to choose among eating, heat and being able to go to work. “Cost of living is all encompassing,” she added. High childcare costs also mean families have to cut hours at work to be able to care for their children, which means less income.
In the past, homeowners who were over 60 or disabled were eligible for town grants to help repair their homes, which can reduce heating costs. No grants were announced for 2024, and this also doesn’t help younger households or renters. Needham is also no longer receiving any federal assistance related to COVID-19.
The support from congregations seems unlikely to return. Religious attendance has been declining for decades in the United States, and this is particularly true in places such as Massachusetts, where only 23% of adults attend a religious service at least once a week. Seventy-eight percent of adults in Massachusetts say they believe in God – but that doesn’t mean they feel the need to engage in communal worship. About 139 religious congregations closed in the Greater Boston area between 2000 and 2002.
“Mainline” Protestant churches, referring to those churches that belong to older, institutional, often liberal denominations such as the Presbyterian Church (USA) or the American Baptists, have especially struggled. The reasons for this are complicated, but one is that these types of churches have found it hard to adapt to a world where church attendance is no longer a cultural expectation. Non-religious voluntary associations such as the American Legion have also seen declining membership.
The Department of Public Health is trying to figure out other ways to help fund this account, and it’s hoping to be able to do more fundraising. “We’re fortunate enough to have the town of Needham put stock into public health,” said Benoit. Cold houses harm people’s health, especially older adults, who can get hypothermia more easily, and children, who can experience lifelong health problems such as asthma from growing up in cold homes.
Donations to the program can be made on the town website.
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