Worries over heat are rising

The first snowflake has yet to fall, but predictions of a tough winter and high home heating costs are already inspiring worry among local agencies and organizations that help people keep warm.

David Harrison, heating assistance division director for the South Middlesex Opportunity Council, said his Framingham office will provide help in paying heating bills for 4,000 residents of 37 towns, a number that has been rising steadily in the past few years.

''It's as bad as ever, and I'm sure it will only get worse," he said.

Lourdes Aspiras, who manages the government-funded program, said residents, who typically have to wait more than a month for their applications to be processed, are encouraged to discuss the situation with their heating oil company, she said.

''Sometimes [the companies] allow nonpayment until the residents are eligible" for SMOC help, she said. Other times, SMOC refers the residents to the Salvation Army or local churches to bridge the gap.

Rosalind Baker, Marlborough's director of human services, said she would love to give away free oil to needy residents as the city did last year when Raytheon Corp. donated 10,000 gallons of unneeded fuel to the city. But that's unlikely, and the predicted cost of fuel this winter worries her.

''Last year was pretty bad," she said. ''Oil is going to be a huge problem this winter, too."

In Needham, officials from the Board of Health, who process residents' applications for heating assistance, partner with a network of homegrown charities such as the Needham Community Council to help low-income residents with their heating bills.

Called the Gift of Warmth, the partnership backs up government programs.

''It's another pocket of money available to people who may not qualify for fuel assistance," said Sandra Robinson, director of the Community Council.

During a recent board meeting, the council pledged more support to the Gift of Warmth fund than the approximately $6,000 provided in past years.

''We know this year is going to be particularly tough for people who already live on the line," Robinson said.

In Norfolk, the local charity, Norfolk Together, has given as much as $1,000 to residents who need help with their heat and other bills.

''We're just a bandage in a financial emergency," said founder Betty Lehan.

But Lehan said that this year the organization, looking at the high cost of heating, is considering giving more.

In Ashland, former selectman John Ellsworth is hoping to replenish the town's 18-year-old Emergency Fund, which he oversees.

The fund has shrunken recently from $150,000 to $75,000, because the state's antismoking law cut deeply into attendance at the bingo games that provide its funding. Heating assistance is expected to take $10,000 from the fund this winter.

So, Ellsworth is looking for more than 100 people to play bingo every Wednesday and Friday.

''We need bodies," he said. ''Fifty or 60 people isn't enough to cover our expenses, so we're working for nothing."

Janet Angelico, director of Wrentham's Senior Center, said applications for fuel assistance have been coming in thick and fast.

''We have already been inundated, and we never get this busy this early," she said. Last year, the center received a total of 26 applications. While they're usually just beginning to hear from people in October, they've already received 10 applications.

In Westborough, Alma DiManche, director of the town's senior center, said she's hopeful government heating assistance programs will provide more money this year.

''It was only $350 in most cases last year, which isn't enough to fill an oil tank," she said.

''And that only pays for their primary heat source. We have a lot of people come in with huge electric bills that we try to get paid down so they're not so worried. We started getting fuel assistance calls on those cold days in September, but all I can tell them is to call back on Nov. 1. When it's cold and nasty out, people start getting anxious."