2-1-1 HELPLINE 2012 Annual Report

A Message from the Director...

2-1-1 was launched in our area five years and nearly 150,000 calls ago! Planning for 2-1-1 service in our area began well before it was established; the Federal Communications Commission designated the number for community information and referral in 2000. By 2004, the Institute for Human Services was collaborating with others as a member of the 2-1-1 Finger Lakes Planning Committee and advocating for partial state support, which was granted in 2007.  I was hired that year to get the service off the ground, expand into additional counties and strengthen our collaboration with partners in Rochester (ABVI-Goodwill) and Ithaca (Human Services Coalition). Since then, thanks to a wide range of supporters, our staff, agencies in our community, collaborative partners, the Institute's Board, and many others, we have leveraged the 2-1-1 number for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance programs, the State Attorney General's foreclosure prevention program, and Holiday Caring services, among others. We've established a region-wide volunteer clearinghouse and resource center (2-1-1 HELPLINE Give Help) which now has hundreds of volunteer opportunities listed. More recently, we have begun to develop the Southern Tier/Finger Lakes Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) collaboration.  Each of these and our other partnerships are important to us and they strengthen the service we are able to provide.  In short, thank you! We would not be able to do this work without the support of our community. ~Carol Wood, Director 2-1-1 HELPLINE

2012 Calls and Referrals

38,836 Total Calls and Website Visits               28,406 Total Calls                  6,557 Basic Needs                 7,107 Consumer Services                    950 Criminal Justice/Legal Services                    158 Education                    113 Environmental Quality                  1,138 Health Care                  4,469 Income Supplies & Employment                  1,505 Individual & Family Life                     585 Mental Health & Counseling.                  2,727 Organization/Comm./Internal Services.                  3,100 Other                10,430 Website Visits

Season's Greetings!

At 2-1-1 HELPLINE, we operate during all seasons and our seasonal initiatives are not limited to the winter holidays. Tax season, summer food service programs, school supplies and holiday caring; each helps people connect with the services they need and causes that matter. Volunteer Income Tax Assistance From December through April we are preparing for, handling, or recovering from tax season. Setting up the calendars, refining the script, scheduling (and changing, then changing again) appointments and reporting the numbers - it keeps us busy.  Last year's call volume broke all prior records: 6,662 referrals to tax-related programs and service. Summer Food Programs Summer Food Service programs provide free, nutritious meals to children and teens at various locations throughout the summer. Some sites also have additional recreational activities available to participants. A map of program sites was added to the 211helpline.org website with details about hours and eligibility; it was viewed 167 times between late June and August (compared to 24 calls during that same period). Back to School The Back to School programs collect and distribute school supplies to students in the region. The season always starts during the summer months when we are not quite ready to think about fall. Agencies request specific supplies (backpacks, pens, pencils, and notebooks) and families sign up for the supplies. Holiday Caring The 2012 Holiday Caring program included a challenge for community agencies and businesses to forego their holiday gift exchanges and instead support one of the toy drives or another program. We were pleased that the Elmira Star-Gazette again promoted 2-1-1 HELPLINE and used our information for their Giving Tree columns.

2-1-1 Helpline is Supported By...

2-1-1 HELPLINE is supported in part by: Steuben & Chemung County Departments of Social Services, United Way of the Southern Tier, Community Foundation of Elmira-Corning and the Finger Lakes, Inc., Allegany County United Way, NYS Office of Children and Family Services and Member Agencies of The Institute for Human Services, Inc