Month: April 2015

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Job Fair May 7, 2015 in Jackson, TN

The Jackson Goodwill Career Solutions Center in Jackson will hold a multi-career job fair on May 7, 2015 from 9:00am – 1:00pm. The job fair will take place at the Center at 1320 South Highland, Jackson, TN. You can call them at 731-736-3401 more more information, or visit their website here. They expect many different types of employers to participate from fast food to CNA positions and everything in between.

As always, dress for success, take several copies of your resume, put on your best smile, and be prepared for on the spot interviews. Need help with a resume? Check out the resume builder at www.jobs4tn.gov. Also watch for the Department of Labor’s Mobile Career Coach to come to your area. They help you in person with resume building.

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Series: What is a Bankruptcy Voluntary Petition Form 1?

While we may generally refer to the entire series of documents we file with the Court as your “Petition”, there is technically a form called the Voluntary Petition (Official Form 1).  For purposes of this series and to cut down on confusion, I’ll call it Form 1.

Form 1 is three pages, and is sort of like the data sheet for your case.  It lists things like your name and address, and what chapter of the Bankruptcy Code you are filing. It also lists an estimate of the number of creditors you have (creditors are the people you owe), an estimate of the value of your assets (assets are the stuff you have), and an estimate of your liabilities (the bills you owe).  There are also several check boxes that are filled in based on your situation to tell the court different things, as well as let the court know that you’ve completed your credit counseling and you’ve lived here long enough to file in this court. Additionally, if you’ve filed bankruptcy before, or if you have a spouse or cosigner in a bankruptcy, then their case information will also be listed on these pages.

Form 1 also contains places where you and your attorney sign saying that everything is correct under penalty of perjury.  You’ll see over the course of this series that there are lots of places you have to sign, and it’s all under penalty of perjury.  Wondering what happens if you don’t tell the truth? See my article here on that.

Here’s a look at what Form 1 looks like:

 

Form 1 Voluntary Petition

 

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Series: What is a Bankruptcy Petition?

You hear us talk about “your Bankruptcy petition” but you may wonder exactly what that is. In short, it’s the group of documents we file with the Bankruptcy Court so you can pay what you have to pay and not pay what you don’t have to pay, as well as get you all of the protection you can have in your case.

In this series of blog posts, we’ll explore what each part of your petition is, what it means, and any other information you might find useful. We will go through each section of the petition piece by piece so that you will have a better understanding of what everything is.

Remember that this will not serve as any legal advice on your situation, this is just a general overview. So if you have questions about your case, you need to be sure to contact your attorney for specific information tailored just for you.

Be sure to check back often for the next article in this series!

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VA Expanding Choice Program eligibility

According to a news release issued April 24, 2015, the VA now will determine eligibility for the Veterans Choice Program based on the distance between a Veteran’s residence and the nearest VA medical facility using driving distance instead of straight line distance.  This change is effective immediately.

What do you think? Will this help you and the people you know? Let me know in the comments!

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How to get help with daily living expenses

If you or someone you know needs help with daily living expenses like utility bills, rent and providing food, I urge you to contact either RIFA (Regional Inter-Faith Association) or ARM (Area Relief Ministries). While RIFA is known for their soup kitchen and store, and ARM is known for Room in the Inn, both agencies do so much more. If you have a daily living need that is not being met and you need help, please call them at

RIFA: 133 Airways Blvd, 731-427-7963 www.rifajackson.org

ARM: 108 South Church, 731-423-9257 www.areareliefministries.org

You can call them and tell them your situation, and they can tell you how they might be able to help you. If they can’t help you for some reason, they may be able to direct you to a person or agency that can meet your specific need.

I’ll also soon be adding a page with lots of information on assistance of all kinds, so watch for that!  If you have found an agency or group to be helpful, let me know and I will be sure to include it on my page.  What helped you once just might be what someone else needs now.

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Tips to make it through temporary unemployment

Many people face it every day — temporary unemployment. Luckily, we have many factories and corporations who can tell their employees in advance that they will not be working on a certain week, or for a certain month, or something similar so people have time to plan. Many of our clients ask what they can do during this time to make things less stressful. Here are a few things you can try:
•First, see if you are eligible for partial unemployment for the time that you are laid off. You’ll want to start looking into this as soon as you know a layoff is coming so that it is effective as soon as possible.
•Second, enroll with one or more temporary agencies. It may sound off the wall, but sometimes employers need a temporary employee (often called “a temp”) for one or two days, or for a week, or other various times. You can tell the temp agency when you will be available and they will try to match you up with a company that needs a temp worker. Some people even enroll with multiple temp agencies because each agency works with different potential employers. Some of these temp positions might even work into a regular full time position if you are looking for a change!
•Third, it’s always wise to have an emergency fund ready for these types of situations. You’ve heard us talk over and over about emergency funds, and this is one of the many reasons why. Even if you can only save $10 per paycheck, do it! You’ll be really happy you did when you need it!

Do you have other ways you’ve made it through similar tough times? Let us know and we’ll add them to our list to share with everyone.

If you aren’t already in a bankruptcy case and you’ve tried all the options and it’s still not enough, maybe it’s time to consider what a bankruptcy case can do for you. If you’ve been sued or someone says they are going to take you to court, we probably need to do something quickly. Give me a call and we’ll work through it together!

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Job Fair April 7, 2015

On Tuesday, April 7, 2015, there will be 2 career fairs at the Jackson Goodwill Career Solutions Centers.

First is the CCA (Corrections Corporation of America) Job Fair 9:00 am – 1:00 pm.

Second is the Hamilton-Ryker Job Fair from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm.

Both companies will have representatives on site conducting interviews, so bring your resume, photo ID and social security card. Remember to dress for success!

Check the Goodwill calendar here.

The Jackson Goodwill Career Solutions location are:
•15-B West University Parkway, Jackson, TN 38305
•1320 South Highland Avenue, Jackson, TN 38301

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New App to help with Budgeting

As you know, we use Dave Ramsey’s company to provide our clients with their Debtor Education requirements. Dave’s company has a new app we thought our clients might be interested in. It’s a free app that helps you with your monthly budgeting. It’s called Every Dollar. You can find it at www.everydollar.com, or in the iTunes app store. They are working on the Android and mobile versions. The basic one is free, and there are, as with any app, upgrades you’d have to pay for. They also have a “suggest a feature” link where you can send them features you’d like to see included. If you check it out, let us know what you think!