Colorado Works, also known as the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, is a cash assistance program.

It's designed to help eligible families with very low incomes achieve economic security by promoting job preparation, work, and family stabilization.

Applicants who are either pregnant or have at least one child, and who meet other eligibility requirements, can receive monthly cash assistance payments, help with emergency household expenses, and/or services such as counseling, training, and employment assistance.

For more information on the program, click here.

For help applying, call the following social service agency serving your county:

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Hinsdale County: Call Gunnison Health & Human Services at 970-641-3244

Mineral County: Call Rio Grande Social Services at (719) 657-3381

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In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.
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Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.
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To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: How to File a Complaint, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in
the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992.
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Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by:
(1) mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410;
(2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or
(3) email: program.intake@usda.gov.
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

This is a federally-funded Food Assistance Program, created to alleviate hunger and malnutrition among low-income households by increasing their food purchasing power.

Eligible households who apply receive a monthly benefit allotment of funds.

Households can redeem their allotment for food items only using an Electronic Benefits Transaction (EBT) card.

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For help applying, call the following social service agency serving your county:

Hinsdale County: Call Gunnison Health & Human Services at 970-641-3244

Mineral County: Call Rio Grande Social Services at (719) 657-3381

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Formerly known as Food Stamps, SNAP provides food assistance benefits as part of a federal nutrition program to help low-income households purchase food.

For more information, click here.

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For help applying, call the following social service agency serving your county:

Hinsdale County: Call Gunnison Health & Human Services at 970-641-3244

Mineral County: Call Rio Grande Social Services at (719) 657-3381

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Our food banks are small, but no one deserves to go hungry.

‍We maintain our supply of quality food through government programs such as The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), Care and Share, and through generous donations from local churches, youth groups, and individuals.

The community food banks are available to all, and open during our regular business hours, at both our Hinsdale and Mineral County offices:

Hinsdale County Food Bank
304 W. Third Street
Lake City, Colorado 81235

Mineral County Food Bank
802 Rio Grande Avenue
Creede, Colorado 81130

We also accept food donations any time during regular business hours.

Food items must meet the following requirements:

- Non-perishable
- If frozen – must be professionally packaged
- Within date (not expired)
- Unopened and/or not partially used

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For more information about either of our food banks please contact the office nearest you: Contact Us!

Colorado's Medicaid Program, also known as Health First Colorado, is public health insurance for eligible Coloradans.

Some of the services covered under Health First Colorado include:

- Dental services
- Emergency care
- Family planning services
- Hospitalization
- Maternity care
- Newborn care
- Outpatient care
- Prescription drugs
- Preventive and wellness services
- Primary care
- Rehabilitative services

To be eligible, you have to meet the income guidelines and fall under one of the following categories:

- Children ages 0-18 with household income under 260% Federal Poverty Level (FPL)
- Pregnant women, over the age of 19, whose household income is under 260% FPL
- Parents and Caretaker Relatives (you must have a dependent child) whose household income does not exceed 133% FPL
- Adults without dependent children whose household income does not exceed 133% FPL

To see if you're eligible and apply online, click here

CCCAP provides access to child care for a reduced cost.

To be eligible, families must:
- Be working, searching for employment, or in training, and families or
- Be enrolled in the Colorado Works program and need child care services to support their efforts toward self-sufficiency
- Live in Colorado
- Have at least one child who is under 13 years old (or 19 years old if the child has special needs or a disability and requires child care)
- Have a family income of less than the county defined maximum

Recipients with income are responsible to pay a portion of the cost of care.

For more information and to apply online, click here

The Old Age Pension (OAP) program provides monthly cash and medical assistance to Coloradans aged 60 years or older.

To apply, get in touch with:

Aid to the Needy and Disabled — Colorado Supplement

This supplemental payment is available for residents aged 0 to 59, who are receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) due to a disability or blindness, and are not receiving the full SSI benefit.

To apply online, visit the Colorado PEAK website

If you need help paying your winter home heating costs, Colorado LEAP may be able to help.

The Colorado Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) helps hard-working Coloradans pay a portion of their home heating costs over the winter months (November-April).

The LEAP program provides assistance with heating costs, equipment repair, and/or replacement of heating tools that can't be fixed.

The program doesn't pay the entire cost of home heating, but it can help alleviate some of the financial burdens that come with our colder months.

If your income is up to 60% of the state median income level, you may qualify for LEAP. To find out if you're eligible, click here.

The amount of benefit you'll receive depends on a variety of factors, including the primary heating fuel costs and your income level.

You can apply online here.

The team here at Silver Thread Public Health are available to help if you need assistance applying for this benefit.

Providing free nutrition education, breastfeeding support, healthy food, health referrals, and other related services, WIC’s goal is to help keep pregnant and breastfeeding women and children under the age of 5 healthy.

WIC is open to all kinds of families in Colorado: married or single parents, working or not working. If you’re a father, mother, grandparent, foster parent, or other legal guardian of a child under 5, you can apply for WIC.

The program is created to help:
- Pregnant women
- Breast-feeding women (up to one year postpartum)
- Non-breastfeeding postpartum women (up to 6 months postpartum)
- Infants
- Children up to the age of 5 years

You can participate in Colorado WIC if you:

- Live in Colorado
- Are pregnant or breastfeeding , and/or have a child younger than 5 years
- Have a family income less than WIC guidelines
- Currently get Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), food stamps or Medicaid
- Have a foster child under age 5
- Meet certain financial requirements and be “nutritionally at risk”

To schedule an appointment, or for more information, call:

HINSDALE COUNTY:
Kim Bemis
WIC Coordinator
Gunnison, Colorado
970-641-7911

MINERAL COUNTY:
WIC office
Monte Vista, Colorado
719-852-2256