How One Website Connects Those in Need With Government Assistance

April 2nd, 2012

FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda

The World at Work is powered by GE. This new series highlights the people, projects and startups that are driving innovation and making the world a better place.

Name: Aunt Bertha

Big Idea: Aunt Bertha collects information on federal, state, county, city, neighborhood and charity programs and puts it all in one place.

[More from Mashable: 5 Companies Working Hard to Change the World]

Why It’s Working: Using information the team learns about various programs, Aunt Bertha matches people with public services available locally or federally, based on their specific needs.

There are thousands of non-profit organizations, government programs, charities and other services across the United States specifically working for people in need. But finding a program that fits a user’s particular situation and location (and the application process that follows) is not only difficult — it’s intimidating.

That’s where Aunt Bertha comes in.

Aunt Bertha simplifies the search for food, health, housing, education and employment programs through its easy-to-use website. To find the programs a user is eligible for, all she has to do is type in a zip code and answer three questions based on family size and income — and it’s all anonymous. Armed with this data, Aunt Bertha delivers free and comprehensible information about relevant programs, including qualifications that need to be met, contact information and guidance on how to apply.

“Aunt Bertha was an idea that took ten years, but it started with my mom,” founder Erine Gray tells Mashable. “When I was 17, she caught a rare disease that caused her to lose her memory. When she came home from the hospital, she didn’t know who we were. Through that experience I came to learn that there are services available, but they were very difficult to track down.”

After graduate school, Gray spent four years improving access to human services as a consultant for the State of Texas: “Many nights, I would listen to calls from the neediest Texans looking for help. I learned that the process for finding and applying for services is hard work and far too complicated,” he says. “Listening to those calls, I became convinced that people wanted to help themselves, but it seemed as if the right information was being hidden from them. Because of this, our mission is to make human service information accessible — to both people and providers.”

When coming up with a name for the site, Gray didn’t want the company to sound like a charity, but rather someone personable whom users could trust. “Aunt Bertha’s the eccentric family member each of us has,” he says. “She never forgets your birthday, but she’s not afraid to shoot you straight. She’s someone you could go to when you’re in trouble.” Since the Aunt Bertha team organizes all of the federal, state and local government programs, a popular tagline for the site is: “Aunt Bertha picks up where Uncle Sam leaves off.”

In September 2011, a user named Kimberly pursued housing assistance, and she wrote under Aunt Bertha’s “Praise” forum: “Although I am thankful for all resources and avenues, I find Aunt Bertha’s site more accessible, and I don’t have to wait on hold on my cellphone while someone is researching programs for me … Surprisingly, there is also a live help desk attendant, via chat, [who] was available to assist me with more information. I am very grateful for Aunt Bertha.”

Gray says an estimated 20,000 people have searched among the more than 3,000 programs on Aunt Bertha. Hundreds of new programs are added every week, as organizations and programs can submit their names and information to the site directly. Although the database has nationally accessible programs, the site has largely focused on Texas and will expand to Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arkansas in coming months.

Gray has financed 100% of the operation himself, and he flexed his skills as a programmer to write all of the software and do most of the design — often the most expensive part of starting a software company. There are currently five people on the Aunt Bertha team, two of which are contractors. However, Gray says they are “ramping up quickly.”

“We’re currently looking for an Austin-based, detail-oriented operations manager familiar with and interested in public policy,” he says. “We’re also looking for interns with laser focus and a passion for public policy. An extra Python and brilliant front-end programmer wouldn’t hurt either.”

Aunt Bertha is a Certified B Corporation, a for-profit business that meets higher standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. Within the past month, it was selected as a 2012 Fellow at the Unreasonable Institute — which partners with organizations to provide entrepreneurs with mentorship, capital and network — and was accepted into the Austin Technology Incubator (ATI), which provides counsel, guidance and support to its member companies to help them transition into successful, high-growth technology businesses.

Series presented by GE

The World at Work is powered by GE. GE Works focuses on the people who make the things that move, power, build and help to cure the world.

This story originally published on Mashable here.