Your Neighbors Have Filed 12,000 Returns Here.
No hidden fees. No judgment. Just a preparer who already knows your situation and has seen this exact form before.
"We've seen this before. You're going to be fine."
— Maria Gutierrez, Lead Preparer, 11 years
What Happens After You
Walk Through the Door
Four steps. No mysteries. By the time you reach the bottom of this page, you've already seen the entire process — and there's nothing left to fear.
Bring whatever you have. We'll figure out the rest.
A shoebox, a folder, a stack of envelopes — whatever form your documents arrived in is fine. Our preparers are trained to work with first-time filers, mixed income sources, multiple 1099s, and situations that feel complicated until someone who's seen them a thousand times sits down with you.
Our promise: We will never charge you a fee we haven't explained in plain language first.
Every line, out loud, in language you understand.
We don't disappear into a back office with your documents. We go through every form together — W-2s, 1099s, childcare receipts, education credits. You ask questions, we answer them. You see every number before it goes anywhere. This is your return, and you should understand it.
Our promise: You will never sign something you didn't read and understand.
We show you the number before we file anything.
Before we submit a single form to the IRS, we walk you through your refund amount, what generated it, and what to expect on your timeline. If there's a balance due, we tell you that too — and we explain your options. The IRS doesn't get to surprise you because we've already had that conversation.
Our promise: You approve your return before we transmit it.
If the IRS writes back, we write back with you.
A letter from the IRS doesn't have to mean a crisis. Every return we file includes audit representation at no additional charge. If the IRS has questions, you call us — not a hotline, not a form submission. A person who filed your return picks up the phone and handles it alongside you.
Our promise: Audit representation is included in every return we file.
Seventeen Years of
Showing Up
These numbers aren't metrics. They're families who got their refund, seniors who didn't get scammed, and shift workers who finally understood their own taxes.
"I brought my mom here for the first time in 2014. She's 74 now and still asks for Delia by name every February. She brings tamales. Delia always acts surprised."
— Roberto Enriquez, client since 2014
Invest in a Neighbor's
Dignity
You've just seen every step of our process. You know exactly what your donation funds. A $35 gift doesn't disappear into overhead — it becomes a refund check that covers rent, groceries, or a car repair that's been waiting since October.
Choose your impact
TaxHearth Community Services is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. EIN: 47-2891034.
Your gift
Covers a full household filing
Secure donation processing · 100% goes to free filings
"I've been volunteering here for six seasons. I've learned more about real-world tax law than any CE course."
— Priya Chandrasekaran, CPA, Volunteer since 2019
Your Skills Are
Worth More Here
We have 340 more clients than we have preparers for this season. If you have a VITA certification collecting dust, or if you speak a language our clients speak, there's a chair waiting for you.
VITA-Certified Preparer
6–10 hrs/week, Feb–AprIf you hold an active VITA certification, we'll place you at a desk the week you apply. You bring the certification; we bring the coffee, the clients, and the forms.
First-Time Filer Guide
3–4 hrs/weekSit with clients who are filing for the first time — immigrants, young adults, gig workers — and walk them through what each form means before they meet with the preparer.
Language Access Volunteer
Flexible schedulingWe serve clients in Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Somali, and Arabic. If you speak any of these fluently, you fill a gap that changes whether a family can participate at all.
The Eleven-Year Clients.
The First-Timers. Everyone.
"I work two jobs — a 1099 from the warehouse and a W-2 from the hospital cafeteria. I went to H&R Block once and paid $280 for a return that had an error in it. I've come here every year since 2018 and paid nothing. They found $800 in credits I didn't know I had."
Darnell Washington
Warehouse & food service worker
Client since 2018
"When we came from the Philippines, we didn't understand the American tax system at all. My husband was afraid to file because we didn't want to do it wrong. The volunteer here spoke Tagalog and sat with us for two hours. We've been coming back for seven years."
Lourdes Reyes
First filed in 2017, now brings her sister
Client since 2017
"My husband passed in 2023. I didn't know how to file as a widow. I didn't know what forms changed. I called here and a real person answered. They made an appointment, they explained everything, and they held my hand through the part where you have to put 'deceased.' That's not something H&R Block does."
Dorothy Kaminski
Retired teacher, filing since 1998
Client since 1998
These clients filed for free because someone like you made a donation. Every story above was funded by community members who believed their neighbors deserved the same care.
Fund a Free Filing