Published October 2004

2-1-1 is answer for coordinated services

By Jon Fine and Carl J. Zapora
Guest Columnists

Imagine moving to Everett from Atlanta to escape an abusive relationship, and you don’t know a soul here. Without a support network, to whom do you turn for help finding an apartment, a job or other vital services for you and your family?

The answer is 2-1-1. Just as 9-1-1 has provided quick access to emergency services, 2-1-1 will provide health and human service information and referral 24 hours a day through this easy-to-remember and universally recognizable telephone number. When you need it most, 2-1-1 can provide information from the myriad agencies and organizations that offer health and human service assistance. The 2-1-1 program fills that critical coordination need and will quickly provide vital information to you.

Washington state needs 2-1-1. This coordinated information and referral line will reduce the many disparate lines that may confuse many people. It will also be extremely crucial during times of crisis, as was clearly demonstrated in Florida, where 2-1-1 already exists, during the aftermath of the recent hurricanes. United Way of King County and United Way of Snohomish County are leading the way to bring this much-needed service to our state, and we are doing so in conjunction with the generosity of the Employees Community Fund of Boeing Puget Sound.

The Employees Community Fund recently announced a special $211,000 matching challenge grant in support of the pending statewide 2-1-1 information and referral line. In addition to the challenge grant, they also contributed an additional $100,000. When their challenge is met, the total amount will reach $522,000.

2-1-1 is successfully being used in 22 states across the United States, with the remaining states in various stages of planning and implementation. Overall, some 70 million people have access to this important number during times of distress.

United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta created the nation’s first 2-1-1 system. Since then, it has connected hundreds of thousands of people to crisis centers, food banks and mental health counseling.

2-1-1 will become a reality here as well, but we’ll need the community’s support to make it happen. Our goal is to ensure every Washington citizen has immediate access to health and human services information.

Organizations donating critical funds needed to launch 2-1-1, such as the Employees Community Fund of Boeing Puget Sound, recognize the difficulty finding the right help at the right time and have made 2-1-1 a priority for our community. It is key to providing our families, neighbors and friends with appropriate help when they need it most.

Strengthening the communities where they live and work is something Employees Community Fund contributors take very seriously. Since its inception in 1951, the fund has distributed more than $400 million to local communities where employees live and work, and that kind of dedication helps improve lives in Washington.

We intend to roll out 2-1-1 in our local community sometime around mid-2005, and have it operational statewide by 2006. We can realize this goal with help from the community, businesses and local government.

2-1-1 has become an important, efficient and widely used community resource in many parts of the country. We now have the opportunity to strengthen lives and communities as well as save millions of dollars here in the Puget Sound region and throughout the state of Washington. For more information about 2-1-1, contact Tom Page at 206-461-8505 or visit www.win211.org.

Jon Fine is president and CEO of United Way of King County (www.unitedwayofkingcounty.org), a nonprofit community-impact organization supporting King County since 1921. Carl J. Zapora is president and CPO of United Way of Snohomish County (www.uwsc.org), a nonprofit community-impact organization supporting Snohomish County since 1940.

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