MONROE -- Crisis Assistance Ministry received $45,000 in grant money last week.

Executive director Gloria Barrino said she did a “praise dance” when she found out. “We were overjoyed to receive such a blessing, ... especially during a time when we’ve had to turn people away,” she said.

Crisis Assistance, a United Way agency, provides emergency assistance to individuals and families. Funds are given directly to landlords, utilities and grocery stores.

Barrino was notified Oct. 13 that the agency received $25,000 from the Merancas Foundation based in Huntersville. Oct. 14, the agency received $20,000 from the James and Bronnie Braswell Trust Fund established by a local couple.

Crisis Assistance helped 289 households from July to September, but has turned away about 145 families, or nearly $150,000 worth of assistance, in the past three months.

Extra funding will allow the agency to “keep more families in their home that were at risk of being homeless,” Barrino said. Including the grants, the agency has a total annual budget of about $475,000.

— Tiffany Lane