In the midst of tax season, almost everyone is ready to begin pulling their hair out, as they sort through a plethora of forms, tables and other paperwork to try and make sense of their financial situation.

For lower income families, filing federal and state tax returns can be especially difficult, since they often lack the funds to pay for the luxury of having them handled by professional accountants.

Thanks to a group of area volunteers, these essential services are no longer out of reach for southwest Michigan families.

Representatives with the United Way of Southwest Michigan discussed how local families can receive assistance with their income tax returns during their presentation to the members of the Dowagiac Rotary Club Thursday afternoon at the Elks Lodge.

Doug Ferrall and Jan Radde with the United Way told the audience about the work the service organization does to organize volunteers for IRS’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, which helps low and moderate-income taxpayers complete their annual tax returns at no cost.

“The average tax return costs $200 to have done, which is huge if you are someone is living on very little,” Ferrall said. “A lot of these people have jobs, but they are in the lower echelon and trying to build up wealth, to get out of cycle of poverty. And going somewhere to have your taxes done if you’re low income is just not a possibility.”

The United Way coordinates volunteers from around the area for the program, which provides assistance to people across the area, working in sites that include Dowagiac and Cassopolis. Of the 316 clients the agency assists, 50 reside in Cass County, Raddle said.

People volunteering to help with the VITA program can serve in two roles: as a greeter, who meets with clients when they enter the site, or as tax preparer, who complete the clients’ tax returns. Either role requires the volunteer to undergo training courses prior to serving the public, Raddle said.

“Each night, preparers are usually able to do four tax preparations,” Ferrall said. “About $1,000 is going back to each person. So on each night, you’re bringing $4,000 back into the community, just by volunteering.”

People in Cass and Berrien counties benefiting from VITA assistance have gotten back more than $4 million in returns since the United Way began administering the program in 2011, Ferrall said.

Despite the investment of time and energy it requires from volunteers versus many other United Way ventures, the organization is encouraging more people to sign up to help for the upcoming tax season.

“I know we have the capacity to serve a lot more people, in Cass County specifically,” Ferrall said. “The limitation is not the need — it’s the volunteers.”

People interested in volunteering can sign up on the United Way website, at http://www.uwsm.org/content/express-volunteer-interest, or by calling them at (269) 982-1700.