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"Help Complete the Count"
Every ten years, we have the opportunity to present a clear picture of our communities. A portrait that will last for ten years and will determine the apportionment of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and how district lines are drawn at all levels of government. This data also guides the allocation of more than $800 billion in federal funding that is crucial to our community's wellbeing, such as health clinics, Head Start, SNAP, school lunches, and many more.
The census is our duty and responsibility to be sure that every single resident gets counted.
In December 2019, the Lorain County Commissioners started planning and organizing a Lorain County 2020 Census Complete Count Committee. The community participated in an orientation planning session at Lorain County Community College on January 9, 2020. Over 80 leaders representing all sectors and disciplines attended the meeting. Leaders representing hospitals, cities, non-profits, faith-based organizations, school districts, and local businesses pledged commitment to ensure Lorain County will have a new record of census participation.
The dedication and creativity of the leadership involved in the Lorain County 2020 Census Complete Count Committee has been unprecedented. We have created a strong team with leaders from each corner of the county and all sectors to educate our community in the importance of the census and encouraging residents to respond to the census,
said Victor Leandry, Executive Director of El Centro.
This coronavirus has presented a new challenge to the already challenging census timeline and process. However, the challenge was not a factor in distracting the Lorain County 2020 Census Complete Count Committee from the goal to make sure every person in Lorain County gets counted.
Even though the stay-at-home order and the new distance guidelines were in place, the committee never stopped working and delivering opportunities for our community to respond to the census.
During the last few months, committee members created challenges between nearby cities to see who will have the highest response rates. Videos of community leaders encouraging residents to respond to the census, community caravans, placement of new billboards, and coverage in the local newspapers also helped increase response figures.
The census deadline has been pushed back to October 31, 2020. In the past, libraries and non-profits have played a crucial role in getting their consumers to fill out the census. Now that the libraries and non-profits are reopening, there is a hope to finish the census campaign strong and breaking any other past census response rates for Lorain County.
The census is easy to answer, and it only takes a few minutes. It is 100% confidential, and every resident needs to complete the census. No matter your race, age, citizenship status, we all count. You can respond to the census using one of the three methods:
filling the form you received in the mail,
online at https://my2020census.gov or
dialing 1-844-330-2020 (English)
or 1-844-468-2020 (Spanish)
