Evening star., 1948-01-08
Family Service Unit
Gearing Case Load 10
|Cuf in Chest Funds

officials of the Family Service
Association, their Community Chest
funds slashed to prewar levels, to-
day worked on the task of reducing
the number of cases in the face oi
dismissal of one-third of their stat
of case workers by mid-February.
The decision to drop five cast
workers, including a supervisor
stems from reduced ALLEGATION
made to the agency by the Com
munity Chest. The association will
operate this year on a $122,60C
budget as against $196,800 approved
by the Chests Budget Committee
before the campaign began. This is
a cut of about 81 per cent.
G. Howland Chase, president, and
Benjamin w. Thoron, treasurer of
the association, announced the
agency's action at press confer
ence late yesterday. The decision
to drop the case workers was made
at a Board of Directors meeting
Monday.
DTduCH W DC SlUSCus
At the same time, officials dis
closed the elimination of three cler-
ical positions and the closing of the
branch Office at $50 Twelfth street
NE. on February l. Workers there
and their clients will have to operate
from the associations main Office
at 1922 Eleventh street NV.
They estimated the agency will
have to carry from $50 to Its fewer
cases at any one time as result
of curtailment. This will amount
to about 1000 less cases in a year.
Obviously we cannot drop fam
lilies in the middle of our work with
them, but we must close out some
cases as quickly as possible, re-
assigning the more urgent ones to
other workers." the two officials
asserted in a statement.
Until these have been absorbed
we cannot take on any new cases
no matter how urgent" they added
Increased Demands Cited.
They noted that in the face o1
reduced Chest funds the demand.
of Family Service and other private
family welfare agencies have beer
increased substantially by the re.
strictions of the Board of Public
Welfare, put into effect last summer
Closing the doors Of public ane
private agencies to families sub
jected to urgent financial, health
and other personal stress can only
result in increased financial bur.
dens on the community for institu.
tional care and other forms o.
treatment" they said.
I'VE fear that the breaking up Of
families who cannot receive help ii
time will result in further family
disorganization, increasing delin'
quency and crime, breakdown ir
health. both physical and mental.
"The citizens of the community
must face the fact that If they vii
not support skilled service of pro.
tective and preventive nature IL
private agencies they will have tt
face increased municipal budgets
to take care of the resulting deterio.
ration in health and public order"
Budget Near 1941 Level.
1t was noted that while the asso-
ciation's case load has increased
its staff is no larger than that ir
existence 10 years ago and its budge'
about the same as In 1941.
Mr.. Chase stressed that the agen-
cy supports the Chest 100 per cent
and believes it "the only way te
raise funds" He added that the as.
ISOLATION would "deplore return
to individual agencies conducting
Embarrassing drives.
I'VE voted in favor of stayint
with the Chest" he declared, "ane
neither we nor the community Il
going to sit by and see the agencie'
disintegrate"
| Mrs. Mildred Kilinski, executive
director Of the association, reported
the agency's entire case load Is un
der review and that, when this i
completed, the basis for droppint
| cases viii be determined.