Diana is a waitress earning $25,000 a year, divorced and raising two children — ages 3 and 7 — alone. Last year, she didn't think she would file an income-tax return because her income didn't require it, she couldn't do it herself, she didn't want to pay for tax preparation and she knew her ex-husband, who was self-employed, had left unpaid tax bills.

But she took a smart gamble. She went to Tax Assistance in Santa Fe and met with one of the 70 volunteer tax preparers. They found that because she had not filed in several years and is entitled to tax credits for people living below $35,000, she had a $7,500 return over two years.

Mind you, she didn't take all that money home, because first she had to pay her ex-husband's unpaid tax bills, though she did have enough left to pay off her own personal bills and will be able to file in the future and collect a refund. That's because she qualifies for both the earned-income tax credit for low-income workers and the child tax credit.

Earned Income Tax Credit Awareness Day will be from
9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Santa Fe Community's College's fitness center, upstairs.

Peter Doniger, AARP tax aide state coordinator, calls Diana's income level "the sweet spot" for the earned-income tax credit. Taxpayers may be eligible for up to $5,000 in a federal return. But only if they file their taxes.

Having children also helps. Each child counts as a $1,000 tax credit if your income is above $12,000.

Tax Aide Santa Fe filed for close to 7,000 taxpayers last year, up 25 percent from the year before.

Among the forgotten tax filers are seniors and undocumented workers. A retired teacher stopped filing when she became widowed because her husband had always filled out the tax return. The Internal Revenue Service discovered this after five years and put a lien on her home. Tax Aide computed her husband's medical bills, filed her return and got the lien removed.

Some 500 undocumented workers got free tax help last year. There is a cadre of Spanish translators — including one Vietnam War veteran who also got assistance from Tax Aide. Often these workers may use a false Social Security number, but have an Individual Taxpayer Identification number that may be used to track taxes — and get a refund.

Doniger believes that the path to citizenship will require that undocumented workers have to be current on tax payments.

The Santa Fe office is among 40 statewide, but its volunteer pool may be among the most impressive. Its volunteers come from the Rotary Club, SCORE, Santa Fe Community College, students earning class credits, volunteer accountants and retired executives at Las Campanas.

Tax Assistance will be open for business Monday though Friday 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Santa Fe Boys and Girls Club, 730 Alto St. and
9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday at SFCC, except Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, when the office closes at 2 p.m.

Billie Blair is president of the Santa Fe Community Foundation. She can be reached at bblair@santafecf.org.