Constituent Success Stories - Marie Gluesenkamp Perez

Recovering Veterans Benefits

“I am deeply grateful to Marie Gluesenkamp Perez’s team for their unwavering support in helping me with my disability claim. Their dedication and commitment to standing up for individuals like me have made a profound impact on my life. The assistance provided, demonstrated not only their expertise but also their genuine concern for the well-being of those they serve.

In a world where government officials are often preoccupied with numerous responsibilities, the rare commitment shown by Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and her team to the ‘little guy’ is truly remarkable. Their intervention not only eased the challenges I faced but also restored my faith in the system.

I want to express my sincere thanks for the time and effort invested in ensuring a positive outcome for my disability claim. Your support has made a significant difference, and I am truly appreciative.

Looking ahead, I hope to stay connected and remain engaged with your office. Your continued dedication to helping individuals navigate the complexities of government processes is invaluable. Thank you once again for making a difference in the lives of ordinary citizens.”

Melissa C.
Longview, WA

Assisting With Passport Delays

“In July, my wife and I submitted expedited renewal of our passports for a long-planned trip to Canada in mid-September. We seemed to be on track when my wife’s new passport arrived four weeks later. However, my renewal appeared to get lost. As time for our trip neared, I reached out to the State Department twice without any response.

So, on September 5, I contacted Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez’s office to see if they could help. The response was awesome! I was immediately assigned a caseworker. I understood he couldn’t guarantee success, but he made it clear he would do whatever he could to help us out. Within a week, my passport renewal application had been located, was processed, and I had my new passport in hand. Just four days before our scheduled trip! I know this would not have happened without a direct query from the Representative’s office.

We are more than impressed and grateful for the professionalism, rapid response, and compassion demonstrated by our Representative’s team! Many, many thanks for being there for us!”

Jerry M.
Ocean Park, WA

Help Navigating Red Tape

“I am on the board of the Willapa Community Development Association, an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization in north Pacific County. The WCDA has partnered with the local American Legion Post 150 to renovate their 100-year-old building to include 17 apartments on the vacant second floor and a resource center on the ground floor.”

The project received a $1 million federal appropriation, but the contract required a UEI number. While the Legion was assigned a number, they faced registration challenges:

“We completed form after online form and contacted multiple service desks. After each submission, we had to wait a minimum of 10 days to determine if our registration attempt was successful. They never were.

In August, Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez hosted a town hall meeting in South Bend, which I and many others attended. The Congresswoman encouraged people who encountered problems in their dealings with federal agencies to contact her office for assistance. Remembering this offer, in mid-September, after our seventh failed attempt to register the Legion’s UEI number and out of frustration and desperation, I emailed her team.”

Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez’s team was able to quickly secure notice that the Legion’s UEI number was registered:

“We very much appreciate the very prompt assistance provided by Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez and her amazing staff. And I am absolutely certain that we will be calling her again (and again)!”

Rebecca C.
Raymond, WA

Support With the Treasury Department

“We would like to pass on our sincere thanks to the staff of the Third District … They were extremely helpful and professional in assisting us to resolve an issue with the Treasury Department.

In February of 2022, I began helping my in-laws update their financial and personal information by changing from a 30-year-old trust to a will. One of the steps was to change names on I bonds and Treasury Bonds to their given names. I started by sending an email to the Treasury Department requesting instructions for the name change. That was followed by a phone call a week later because I hadn’t received any response to the email. … Here is where the problem started. Both contacts provided numerous forms that would be required, and they were different.

At this point, contacting the Treasury Department became quite difficult. Phone calls were on hold for hours if they were answered at all. … I was concerned as we were dealing with a significant amount of money and a lot of personal and financial information.

I reached out to your office in the Third District to see if help was available there. … At this point I want to mention how professional the past and current staff of this office has been. They answer phone calls, return messages and emails. … The professionalism in the whole office was exceptional. Especially considering my lack of contact with all the other government agencies.

Eventually with [your] assistance, we were able to get an individual in the Treasury Department assigned to us and have a case number provided. … I cannot emphasize enough the professionalism and assistance this office provided us to help with our dealing with the Treasury Department. In total, we redeemed approximately $175,000 in I bonds, transferred $55,000 in Treasury Bonds to their financial advisor, and recovered over $10,000 in missed interest payments. We are so thankful that this money was not needed for health or living requirements.”

Anonymous
Pacific County, WA

Resolving Delays with Green Card Applications

“I had been waiting for my Green Card to be approved for two years, with no progress on my application for more than a year. Fearing that my case had stalled, as it was outside normal processing times, I decided to contact Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez for assistance.

Her team responded immediately, and within a week, my Green Card was approved. I cannot thank her enough for her support. Thanks to her efforts, I can finally visit and be reunited with my family back in Canada. Her dedication to her constituents is truly remarkable. Thank you!”

Ioana T.
Ridgefield, WA

Helping With VA Healthcare

“I had trouble getting Sound Physicians to process my husbands VA bills properly. After reaching out to the VA twice, and then reaching back out to Sound Physicians and still getting no relief, I reached out to Marie Gluesenkamp Perez.

They were able to contact the VA … and suddenly the problem was taken care of. I cannot thank Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and her office enough for helping me out.”

Liz I.
Vancouver, WA

Speeding Up Visa Applications

“Working with a caseworker from Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez’s office was a dream!

Not only did he lodge a Congressional inquiry quickly (with about a 1 day turnaround time), but the client’s U.S. visa interview was approved 3 days later, after having been stuck in administrative processing for over 4 months.

Thank you to the team at Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez’s office for such fast and incredible service!”

Mandy F. (On behalf of her client)
North Bonneville, WA

Getting Answers From the IRS

“I was having quite a bit of trouble having my amended tax return processed, which would result in a significant tax refund for me. I waited for the standard turnaround time of 16 weeks, then was advised by the IRS to wait for the pandemic-adjusted turnaround time of 20 weeks, and upon calling in every four weeks thereafter, was told to simply wait … with no end in sight and worst of all, having no information regarding my return.

To add insult to injury, the phone number provided by the IRS had an IVR system that was barely functional, so it was a toss-up each time I called, whether I’d successfully be able to get through to any live person after many minutes of punching touch tones. As I approached the one year mark while getting the runaround, I decided to approach my congressional representative for the first time in my life.

My case was immediately assigned to a caseworker in Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez’s office, and I was told in clear language what was needed, and what the next steps of the process were. I really appreciated the clarity and updates facilitated by my caseworker, and I have little doubt that had I not reached out, my return would still be languishing in a pile somewhere, collecting dust.

While it still took some time to get the IRS to fully process my return, the responsiveness and communication from the Congresswoman’s office really set my mind at ease immediately after contacting her office, that someone was working to advocate on my behalf.”

Andrew J.
Camas, WA

Accessing Military Records

“For several months I had tried to get copies of my military medical records, and had no luck.

I sent a letter to Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez, she went to bat, and I have my records! Thank you.”

Barry O.
Vancouver, WA

Breaking Logjams With the SBA

“We were having no success getting our records corrected with the SBA, and subsequently the Treasury Department, regarding a loan we had received from the SBA. We were met with confused and conflicting responses.

We contacted Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez’s office and received a quick response asking for background information. Her office was able to break through the red tape to have a supervisory level SBA official review the situation, and it was quickly resolved.

The federal government is a large bureaucracy and mistakes will happen; Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez’s office was incredibly responsive and helpful in resolving our dilemma.”

Christi C.
Battle Ground, WA

Honoring Military Valor

“I was struggling with publicly available resources to obtain my father’s military records and a POW medal from his service during WWII.

I contacted Representative Gluesenkamp Perez’s office and they were very helpful in contacting the Department of the Army on my behalf.

Although the military was unable to reconstruct my father’s complete record, I did receive the POW medal.

This piece of family history is something I treasure since my father passed away many years ago, so he was unable to give us his personal account of his experiences.”

Diane S.
Vancouver, WA

Addressing Delayed Tax Refunds

“After 10 months of receiving no information from the IRS regarding our mother’s tax refund (she sadly passed away 30 days after we filed her taxes), we contacted Representative Gluesenkamp Perez’s office for help and guidance.

Our advocate immediately jumped in to help. She took all of our paperwork and went to work. After 10 months of ‘refund pending’ we received our mother’s tax refund within a few weeks.

The stress of our mother passing and then trying to navigate settling the estate and waiting for an IRS response was just too much. Representative Gluesenkamp Perez’s office put all of this behind us in a matter of weeks. Incredible!

To have her office as our advocate relieved a lot of our stress. Without the help of Representative Gluesenkamp Perez’s office we would still be staring at a “refund pending” status bar. Representative Gluesenkamp Perez took the time to call our family to make sure if we needed any more help with 2023 taxes to contact her office and they would be ready to help.

A job well done by everyone at Representative Gluesenkamp Perez’s office.”

Jody G.
Battle Ground, WA

Aiding With Firearm Transaction Delays

“Marie did an excellent job pursuing an issue I had with the ATF. She recovered my NICS transaction number which was an ongoing battle for me for almost two years.

She did an excellent job getting my issue resolved [and] had the information I needed in less than 24 hours.

Marie went above and beyond to help me out and I appreciate that.”

Jon H.
Vancouver, WA

Getting Social Security Statement Corrections

“I contacted Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez’s office after trying to get Social Security to correct my earnings statement.

After two in-person visits to the local Social Security office, a 2.5-hour phone conversation with the DC-based operation, and over nearly two years in trying to get the Social Security operation to issue a correction, it only took Marie’s office a week to FINALLY correct the matter.

I cannot say enough about the rapid response, professionalism, and deep concern she and her team showed as they shepherded and solved my problem. Marie worked for me and she will work for YOU, her constituents, no matter who you are.

I am very grateful for her intervention because I had serious concerns it would ever be resolved before I hit retirement age.”

Cindy V.
Vancouver, WA