GULF SHORES, Ala, — Rick Zapata, Regional Extension Agent for Consumer Science and Personal Financial Management for the Alabama Cooperative Extension system says the he is here for the people. Free seminars and workshops are being conducted by the organization to assist those in the Baldwin County area who have been diversely affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The Alabama Cooperative Extension System operates as the primary outreach organization for the land-grant functions of Alabama A&M and Auburn Universities, delivering research-based educational programs that enable people to improve their quality of life and economic well-being.

“We are in the business of helping folks,” Zapata told those in attendance at Wednesday’s Town Hall meeting in Orange Beach. “We are boots on the ground.”

According to Zapata, the workshops they have been hosting along the Gulf Coast have been producing some interesting data from the participants.

“When we ask people what is their chief concern, the overwhelming response is ‘family’,” Zapata said. “The second most frequent response is ‘finance,’ and that speaks pretty much to southern people because we are all about the family.”

Zapata said that when asked to rate their stress level, only 1-percent of those responding said that their stress levels were moderate or less.

“Ninety nine percent said that their stress levels are high or very high. We want to continue to accumulate this data and will make them available to the public.”

Available Workshops

Unemployment Workshop

Creating a skills based resume, how to fill out a job application, how to prepare for an interview, how to set up a job search network and how to conduct an internet job search are just some of the benefits available through this specialized workshop. In small groups, materials can be covered in a 3-hour time frame which allows for job search leads to be developed in class. A written evaluation is taken at the end of the workshop. The next Unemployment Workshop is scheduled for August 23rd at the Fairhope Library from 6 until 9 p.m.

Homeowner Oil Spill Education

This workshop is targeted at homeowners who own waterfront property, and has been approved the power point presentation that is used with this workshop. It addresses concerns for homeowners who find oil washing up on their property, and will also address disposal issues, pet and plant contamination, and clean up safety issues. In small groups, materials can be covered in a 3-hour time frame which will allow for questions and instructor interaction with students. There is a Homeowner Oil Spill Education workshop scheduled for August 9th at the Fairhope library.

Solving Oil Spill Financial and Stress Problems

This workshop targets two main concerns post-oil spill. Topics covered include budgeting during hard times, dealing with creditors, credit bureau corrections, how to survive increased stress levels, family stress issues and sources of help for finances and stress.

“There’s an old adage that once a creditor sells your account to collection agencies, it is their job to harass you by phone, thinking that it will force you to pay them some money. There is a new federal law that will stop those types of phone calls. That is one of the things that we teach in this program.”

Materials are covered in a 3-hour time frame and a written evaluation is taken at the end of the workshop.

The next Solving Oil Spill Financial and Stress Problems workshop is scheduled for August 10th at the Gulf Shores United Methodist Church.

All of the workshops are absolutely free to the public and Zapata said that additional courses are still being scheduled for future dates.

Zapata also said that presently there are funds available from congress specifically for catfish farmers, shrimpers and asparagus growers.

“If you can figure out how asparagus growers got lumped in with shrimpers and catfish farmers you are smarter than I am,” joked Zapata.

The deadline for application for these funds is September 23. Shrimpers are eligible for $24,000. They would have to produce some trip tickets showing that they did sell shrimp during the past year, and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System will provide the business education they will need, free of charge.