Photo by Niamh Coomey. VITA Tax preparer Becky Gentle, left, and VITA Site Coordinator Marsha Porter see clients by appointment in the basement of the Ohio County Library.

As Tax Day — the final day to file state and federal income taxes — comes today, one volunteer group also wraps up its work, helping thousands in need of assistance file their taxes.

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, or VITA, finished up its annual free tax prep program today after helping over 3,000 people file. Ohio County’s VITA program held sessions in the basement of the Ohio County Library in downtown Wheeling from January through today for residents of the Northern Panhandle that may have a difficult time completing their taxes on their own. The program is an extension of the IRS.

VITA is directed at anyone who needs a little extra assistance with their taxes. Older people, people with disabilities, people with low to moderate income levels, people with limited proficiency in English and military members and veterans are among those that the VITA program caters to.

Tax preparer with VITA Becky Gentle said the main demographics that VITA volunteers see are low income and elderly people, many of whom they get to know and see year after year.

Gentle and other tax preparers help answer questions, explain benefits and reductions and guide people towards making the best decisions for themselves.

“They bring their paperwork in, we look at their paperwork, we do their taxes, we try to give them information as to what they should do,” Gentle said. “Just help them understand the whole tax system, why things are happening, what benefits they’re able to get, how everything works.”

The cost of hiring someone to file your taxes — which often falls between $200 and $600 — is a big barrier for a lot of people around tax season, Gentle said. Having this free service that people can come back to year after year is a huge benefit to them, she said.

“Every year they get to know us, we get to know them, we maintain all of their information from year to year and they just feel comfortable,” Gentle said.

VITA Site Coordinator Marsha Porter said the volunteers do what they can to meet people where they are and adapt to suit their individual needs and limitations. This includes making trips to help those that are not able to make the trip to an appointment in-person.

“We do help a lot of people and we give a good service. We actually stop at their homes if they can’t get out,” Porter said. “We go to their cars if they need it. We’re a one-stop service. We do, we go out of our way to help them.”