Brenda Gagne, chief programs officer for Tri-County CAP, asked the Tamworth Select Board on Jan. 2 for level funding to support services provided in Tamworth, saying the agency requested about $6,327 for the year and that Tri-County CAP served 836 Tamworth residents last year with services totaling roughly $373,000.

The ask, Gagne said, covers fuel and electric assistance, transit services, weatherization, dental care and guardianship services. “The funding we do get from the towns are extremely important in providing the match dollars we need for the federal funding that we receive,” Gagne said.

A board member, Leanne Prentice, pressed Tri-County CAP on how it calculates town requests and on recent complaints to the town welfare officer about responsiveness. “How do you come up with $6,327? Is it a percentage? Is it the match that you need?” Prentice asked. Gagne replied that the agency uses a per-resident formula — either $2 or $2.25 per resident — multiplied by the town population, and that the number of residents served can fluctuate year to year.

Kathy Livingston, director of the Family Connections Resource Center at Children Unlimited, told the board the center seeks level funding from Tamworth and described programs serving families with children ages 0–5, diaper depots and partnerships with local schools and the public library. “We do ask the towns for funding, and we're asking Tamworth for level funding again,” Livingston said, citing increases in needs for food, diapers and transportation among families.

Both presenters described efforts to improve access: Tri-County CAP said calls now roll to staff cell phones and that cold-weather sheltering funds can pay for motel rooms during extreme weather events; Children Unlimited described playgroups, diaper depots, and coordinated pickups for families who cannot travel to mobile pantries.

The board clerk later read figures into the record; at one point Gagne cited $6,327 as the request, and the clerk later referenced $6,023.27 in the meeting recap. That discrepancy was recorded in the meeting transcript and remains on the minutes as reported at the meeting.

No vote on the nonprofit requests took place at the Jan. 2 meeting; the board concluded the presentations and said funding decisions would proceed through the usual budget and town meeting processes.