Salvation Army and P.E.I. government expand home heating program

More money is available to more Islanders to help heat their homes this winter through The Salvation Army's home heating program.

The program, funded by the provincial government, is now offering a maximum of $600 per year per family, compared to $350 previously.

The program is also beginning earlier, and the income threshold has gone up.

"Oil is not cheap, propane is cheaper, but still not cheap. Electricity bills, all of these things add up," said Lt. Kyron Newbury with The Salvation Army in Charlottetown.

"We're really hoping that more people will be able to receive help, be able to relieve some of that stress that is on families here on the Island."

The income eligibility for the program has gone up to $26,500 for a single person and $34,000 for a household of two people or more.

Islanders can now begin applying Nov. 15, instead of in January as in previous years.

"It's not like winter doesn't start till January," said Newbury.

"It's November eighth and it's almost around zero degrees, so heat's got to be on and oil has got to be cranked up."

Program seeing more demand

Newbury said 2020 was a busy year for the home heating program.

"With the pandemic, we had many, many more families than we would normally have. People were being laid off of work, so we were needing to help a lot more people," he said.

The program runs until April 30, 2022. Anyone looking for more information can contact The Salvation Army in Charlottetown or Summerside.