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41 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 16, 2004 Legal aid lawyers want self-sufficiency They’re trying to find money to pay off their building so monthly mortgage payments can go to clients instead By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Jackson County’s legal-aid attorneys want help. They’re seeking $400,000 to retire their mortgage and create an endowment fund to provide sound financial footing for the Center for Nonprofit Legal Services in Medford. Money that now pays the monthly rent could be better spent helping clients, says Debra Lee, executive director. An endowment fund would provide the nonprofit with additional income at a time when funding from other sources may become less certain. "We have to make sure we’re here to be a community resource," Lee says. The "Partnership for Justice" campaign seeks to raise $200,000 to pay off the mortgage on the Thomas Building, at 225 W. Main St. The two-story, 6,500 square-foot building has been a fixture in downtown Medford for more than 80 years and has a long history of attorney occupants. Advertisement An additional $200,000 would be used to create an income-earning fund administered by the Oregon Community Foundation. "Self-sufficiency is the main goal," says Sue Densmore, who is organizing the campaign with seed-money grants from the Carpenter Foundation and the Oregon Community Foundation. "We couldn’t afford to do it out of (the center’s) budget," she says. The Center for Nonprofit Legal Services began its work in Medford in the early 1970s. It’s one of five nonprofit legal-service centers in Oregon, and the only one that limits its services to Jackson County. The center’s five staff attorneys handle about 1,200 cases in a year for people who lack the resources to hire for-profit legal counsel. Clients must meet strict income limits determined by federal poverty guidelines. "Anyone who has a family and works for minimum wage would qualify," Lee says. Many clients are elderly or disabled. Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) are women, many of whom are struggling with issues of domestic violence, Lee says. Cuts in state spending for social services have increased the demand for legal-aid attorneys as people struggle to find help. Legal-aid attorneys, for example, have represented local disabled people when they appeal decisions to reduce or eliminate their benefits. They also refer people to other agencies that may be able to offer help. "We have a pretty broad view of how the system works," Lee says, "and where people can go to get services." More spending cuts are anticipated in the next session of the Legislature, which convenes in January, and Lee expects those cuts to swell the demand for legal-aid services. She says one of the campaign’s goals is to make the center more visible to Jackson County residents who have little exposure to the courts and the legal system. "We want to be more in the public view," she says. "We’ve been working quietly for 30 years to help elderly and low-income people protect their civil legal rights." For more information about the campaign, call the Center for Nonprofit Legal Services at 779-7291 or visit www.cnpls.orgon the Web. Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers