Charlene Renaud is the first to admit she was ready to leave 10 weeks of back unemployment benefits behind.
The 71-year-old finance manager told News 6 she was frustrated because no matter what she tried or who she called there was no way to access her account with the Department of Economic Opportunity.
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Renaud said she lost her job on April 29, 2021, and made several attempts to file for state and federal unemployment benefits
“I went through different channels and so forth,” she said, “I tried state representatives, I tried calling every single day and I wasn’t getting anywhere.”
Renaud, who moved to Florida from Ohio after her fiancé passed away, said her family urged her to keep fighting and then she remembered the Make Ends Meet reporting.
“I hear you telling people not to give up and I put my trust in you,” she said. ” I kept going.”
That motivated her to send email messages to Make Ends Meet and our team helped her through the appeals process.
“You said to file an appeal process which I did,” she said. “I put my claims in for all of those weeks, I had 50 pages worth (of claims).”
On Aug. 8, Renaud received the full 10 weeks of state and federal benefits totaling more than $4,800.
“The one thing I would stress is that even though you feel hopeless, put your trust in your family and to WKMG Getting Results, hang in there don’t give up,” she said.
Make Ends Meet has helped residents in Florida and across the country secure their unemployment benefits.
To date, we have helped secure well over $3 million in benefits and funds garnished by the DEO for mistaken overpayments.
If you have an unemployment issue email makeendsmeet@wkmg.com or text the words make ends meet to 407-676-7428.
Remember to include the issue and a screen shot of your DEO account with claimant number and monetary status.
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