State Treasurer Riley Moore visited Parkersburg on Friday, March 15, to present an unclaimed property check worth more than $25,000 to Tri-City Baptist Church.
Pictured left to right: Tri-City Baptist Church Pastor Joe Ward, State Treasurer Riley Moore
“Due to my Office’s modernization efforts, we have shattered two records in efficiently returning lost funds to West Virginians at the fastest pace in state history,” Treasurer Moore said. “Whether we are reuniting citizens, business owners or organizations that are dedicated to supporting the local community – such as Tri-City Baptist Church – it is always a pleasure to return money to its rightful owner.”
Treasurer Moore presented an unclaimed property check worth $25,494.78 to Tri-City Baptist Church Pastor Joe Ward at the church last Friday. The majority of the funds were from a mature certificate of deposit and a savings account that were turned over to the Office’s Unclaimed Property Division.
Since 1991, Ward has served as the pastor of Tri-City Baptist Church in Parkersburg.
“On behalf of Tri-City Baptist Church, I’d like to express our gratitude to State Treasurer Riley Moore and his staff for their efforts in returning more than $25,000 in unclaimed funds to our church,” Pastor Ward said. “Representatives from the State Treasurer’s Office reached out to us and notified us of the unclaimed funds in their possession. As a result of their initiative, we were made aware of these unclaimed funds and the process for returning them to us. The West Virginia Treasury representatives were extremely helpful in providing us with the forms we needed and guiding us through the process of securing our funds.
“This process culminated in State Treasurer Riley Moore personally delivering the check and presenting it to our church. These funds are important to our overall financial support and to fulfilling our church mission and we’re grateful for their return.”
During February, Treasurer Moore’s Unclaimed Property Division returned more than $2 million worth of unclaimed funds to individuals, businesses and other organizations. The Treasurer’s Office has more $430 million worth of unclaimed property listings in its database. Currently, Wood County has more than 144,00 unclaimed property listings worth nearly $20 million.
For more information about the unclaimed property program or to find out if the Office is holding any money for you, visit www.WVUnclaimedProperty.gov.
What is Unclaimed Property?
Unclaimed property can include financial accounts or items of value in which the owner has not initiated any activity for one year or longer. Common examples include unpaid life insurance benefits, forgotten bank accounts and unused rebate cards. (While the title includes the word “property,” it does not however include real estate.)
West Virginia’s unclaimed property laws protect the public by ensuring money and property owed to them is returned to them, rather than remaining permanently with financial institutions, business associations, governments and other entities. The Treasurer seeks to reunite the unclaimed property, including uncashed paychecks, stocks, or safe deposit box contents, with its owner.
Nationwide, nearly 33 million people in the United States – one in every 10 – are estimated to have unclaimed property available for them to claim.
How Can I Find Unclaimed Property in My Name?
West Virginians searching for lost financial assets can go to www.WVUnclaimedProperty.gov. In addition to finding property, the website will also help you track a claim.
A demonstration of how to use the Unclaimed Property search site is available on the Treasury’s YouTube page, at: https://youtu.be/K09yQ7YNKlE.
To search for lost financial assets outside West Virginia, visit www.MissingMoney.com.