As a retired veteran living on a fixed income, paying a tax preparer to fill out a few forms stings, Bellefontaine resident William Schoffner said. That’s a big part of the reason he has been having his taxes prepared at the Logan County Friendly Senior Center the past three years.
Volunteer tax preparers, from front to back, Peter Crowe, Bill McCormick, Earl LeVan and Fran Sipple help local residents complete their tax returns Monday afternoon on the first day of the AARP’s free tax filing program at the Logan County Friendly Senior, 934 S. Main St. (EXAMINER PHOTO | REUBEN MEES)
“Last time I went to one of the big guys, I gave them $150 to $200 and they gave me three sheets of paper that took 15 minutes to fill out,” Schoffner said as he completed a brief bit of paperwork while waiting to see one of the volunteer preparers. “I’m a senior and they’ve always treated us good here. They’re reliable and you can trust them.”
Just one day into the free tax preparation program at the 934 S. Main St. senior center, volunteers have already filled the time slots nearly through the end of February.
“It’s just the first day and we’re already booked out more than two weeks,” volunteer tax preparer Bill McCormick said. “We completed over 400 returns for each of the past two years and I expect we’ll do about that many this year.”