Welcome to United Way of Southwestern Indiana 2-1-1 eNewsletter! The purpose of this newsletter is to make you, our social services partners, aware of 2-1-1 activities, new and/or changes to programs in our database, and to show you what we are doing. The 2-1-1 eNews will be released the last week of the month.

We encourage your feedback! Let us know how we can help you, if you need 2-1-1 supplies, or if you would like someone to speak about 2-1-1.

Send Stephanie an email at snorrick@unitedwayswi.org  

In this issue:

• Happy Birthday 2-1-1!  
• What was that number again? 
• Vanderburgh County Homeless Connect 
• Community Connect 
• Posey County Satellite Office  

Stephanie Norrick, CIRS

Director of Community Resources

Carol Tenhumberg, CIRS

Community Resource Specialist

Cathy Perrin, CIRS

Community Resource Specialist

Jan Martin

Community Resource Specialist

Cierra Gregory

Intern, Community Resource Specialist

Happy Birthday 2-1-1!   

On February 11, 2011, Governor Mitch Daniels proclaimed the day to be 2-1-1 Day in the state of Indiana.  In addition to the proclamation, your local 2-1-1 Center celebrated it's 6^th birthday as a 2-1-1 Center.  Since that time, we have answered over 120,000 calls for assistance ranging from the funny (when's Mother's Day?) to the heart-breaking and complex calls of domestic abuse, homelessness and suicide.

1. Food
2. Housing/Utilities
3. Income Support 
4. Health Care 
5. Clothing 

1. Housing/Utility
2. Income Support
3. Transportation 
4. Food 
5. Clothing 

Type of Call

Advocacy - 2 

Assessment - 1,552 

Crisis - 0

Information - 69 

Sex of Caller

Female - 1,110 

Male - 457 

Who's Calling

Friend/Family - 28 

Organization - 285 

Self - 1,284 

Number of Referrals Made 

Serving as your 2-1-1 Center for Vanderburgh, Warrick, Spencer, Posey and  

Gibson counties.

 What was that number again?

"David" is a young professional in the community. Recently, David found himself in an unthinkable situation: his wife was diagnosed with a terminal illness. All of the couple's resources, including all of his paid time off and family medical leave, were spent taking her to and from doctor's appointments with the hope of providing her some comfort. On his last day of leave, all David could think was, "What do I do now?"

"Marcus" suddenly found himself unable to provide food for his family. Like many people in our community, Marcus found himself laid-off from his long-time job. Marcus made the long trip to WorkOne in the hope of finding employment. He walked through the doors to find a sea of computers and waiting patrons. Before walking up to the check-in counter, Marcus thought to himself, "What are the kids going to eat tonight?"

As he was escorting his wife out of the waiting room, David spotted a brightly colored business card sitting on the receptionist station. The card read, "Need Help or Information? Dial 2-1-1." Across town, Marcus was seeing the same card at the counter at WorkOne. He hesitated for a moment, but eventually took one with him.

Both men dialed 2-1-1 and were greeted by a Community Resource Specialist who walked them through a series of questions that led them to services they needed.

While these stories are different, they have one thing in common: these people needed help and didn't know where to turn. Unfortunately, David and Marcus's stories are not unique to the Community Resource Specialists at the United Way's 2-1-1 Center. Specialists receive calls like these every day. Most callers are surprised at how simple the process is and that they can find help by dialing three numbers: 2-1-1. 

One Day.  One Stop.  One Mission 

Vanderburgh Homeless Connect is a one-day, one-stop event sponsored by the Commission on Homelessness and other community partners. It is designed to provide various services and hospitality in a convenient one-stop model directly to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

This year's event will take place on March 16, 2011, at The Centre, Brooks Exhibit Hall.

The 2010 event served 586 guests through 90 vendors with 195 staff and more than 200 community volunteers.

People in our area who are homeless or near-homeless will be invited and welcomed to the event. This day of services will be shaped around the values of :

• Hospitality from the whole community, with consumers as welcomed Guests
• Immediacy- same-day results for consumers
• Community- voluntary civic participation
• Partnership across agencies and sectors of the community
• Excellence through rigorous evaluation and improvement

Vanderburgh Homeless Connect is key to strategies in Destination: Home, the ten-year plan to end homelessness in Evansville and Vanderburgh County. Destination: Home aims to "maximize resources and access to services through coordination of existing services and providers."

To learn more, please visit http://www.vanderburghhomelessconnect.org/about.aspx or dial 2-1-1.

Community Connect

A new event, called "Community Connect," organized by local collaborative partners, is "a one-stop monthly event for community members who need to access service providers at one location" (similar to Vanderburgh Homeless Connect but on a smaller scale and held more frequently). 

Various service providers will be available each month at a "satellite office" setting to offer as many of their services as possible alongside other providers, making it easier for potential guests to access more services at one place. While providers are serving guests, other services will be available through the host site: food pantry, hot meal, clothing, parenting resources.

Community Connect will be held every 4^th Tuesday.  If your organization would be interested in participating in a future month, please contact Susan White at swhite@evansvilledayschool.org to reserve a table during the months that best fit your schedule.  Due to limited space, all tables are first-come/first-serve.

Posey County Satellite Office

This event is similar in nature to the Community Connect concept- it offers a simple set up and monthly opportunity for Guests to access providers in one place. 

This event is held on the 4^th Monday of the month at God's Storehouse, behind St. Peter's United Church of Christ on State Hwy 66.  A few agencies typically providing services include Family Matters and Willow Tree of Posey County.  The host site offers other services such as food pantry, computer lab, etc.