Report to the Community 2010-11 United Way 2-1-1 Turns Five! On March 9, 2011, United Way 2-1-1 marked its five-year anniversary of providing 24-hour information and referral to the expanded Greater Kansas City metro. While we have grown greatly since 2006, we continue to provide a caring and knowledgeable connection to community resources.
Call Totals by Year 180000
155880
160000
136313
140000 109801
120000 100000 80000 60000
75722 57977
40000 20000 0 2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Our call volume has almost tripled since our opening in 2006. During this time we have worked diligently with our partners to provide access to services that are most important to our callers. During the mortgage crisis, United Way of Greater Kansas City partnered with NeighborWorks, Local Investment Commission, Mid-America Regional Council, the Attorneys General from Missouri & Kansas, and the Federal Trade Commission to ensure we only provided referrals to HUD-certified mortgage counselors so people could avoid the multitude of scams. Basic needs are still the most common requests of United Way 2-1-1. As you can see below, rent and utility assistance make up more than half of all needs requested by callers.
In 2010, United Way 2-1-1 also began working toward accreditation through the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems (AIRS). AIRS creates national standards for information & referral and accreditation ensures an organization is meeting those standards. We also started the process of moving the Citizen Assist Program (CAP) from the Visiting Nurse Association to United Way 2-1-1. CAP provides health and psychosocial assessments in the homes of individuals who are referred by emergency response agencies. Through CAP, United Way 2-1-1 can now provide an in-person touch for individuals who require more than a phone referral.
2010 Caller Needs Other 27.6% Utilities 46.6%
Transportation
1.4% Housing 6.4% Food 5.1% Rent 12.9%
Including CAP, United Way 2-1-1 now has 29 staff members including 20 part-time call specialists, a full time senior call specialist, a resource specialist, a supervisor, an administrative assistant, a health care advocate and a director.
United Way 2-1-1 Contracts with Other 2-1-1 Programs As a 24 hour service, United Way 2-1-1 of Greater Kansas City is able to provide after hours and weekend service to other 2-1-1 operations who choose not to staff 24 hours a day. We have provided service to Kansas 2-1-1 at United Way of the Plains in Wichita for four and a half years, and continue to do so. The year 2010 saw the end of one contract, with Mile High United Way in Denver, CO. Colorado opened a statewide 24-hour 2-1-1 operation and began taking their calls locally. United Way 2-1-1 of Greater Kansas City is seeking other contracts and has begun a successful partnership with United Way of Greater St. Louis and Missouri 2-1-1 which may lead to many opportunities in 2011.
Who is calling United Way 2-1-1? United Way 2-1-1 receives hundreds of calls every day, but who is calling? In 2010, those callers were...
… 1,923 tax payers who found out they could get their taxes prepared for free
… 1,051 employed people who didn’t have enough food for themselves or their families
… 404 people who wanted to help themselves through adult education or job training programs
… 35,266 families with children who needed help with housing or utilities
… 860 people who decided to seek mental health services in order to improve their lives
… 121 seniors who needed help paying for their prescriptions
… 476 people who wanted to volunteer their time or donate to their local community
Stories from United Way 2-1-1 Callers* A Jackson County mother, Tara, called looking for help with her electric bill last summer. The call specialist was able to connect her to Metro Lutheran Ministry, a United Way partner agency, for help with the bill. Then, while the call specialist was asking about demographic information, Tara began to talk about how stressed she was raising her autistic twin girls. The call specialist suggested referrals such as Autism Society of the Heartland that could provide support. Tara was unaware that there was help for parents like her and very excited to have that option! Francis, who is 53 and lives alone in Johnson County, began her call one morning by telling the call specialist she needed help with everything in her life. Francis spoke very softly, and as the call specialist asked questions to narrow down what her needs might be, she found out that Francis had thyroid cancer. The call specialist provided information on the Bloch Foundation cancer hotline which matches people living with cancer with a long-term survivor of the same type of cancer for support. The call specialist also referred Francis to the Citizen Assist Program (now a part of United Way 2-1-1), who will meet with Francis in her home to identify services she might need that can’t be assessed over the phone. A young man, Danny, was working with a traveling sales company that left him, his wife and baby stranded in Kansas City. A local friend put them up in a motel for a night because all of the shelters they knew of were full. It was coming close to checkout time and he was searching online for any help he could find when he found information about United Way 2-1-1. He called to ask for bus tickets back home to Virginia. The call specialist talked with him about the lack of that service in Kansas City, but explained that we could connect him with other resources. We were able to provide referrals to three family shelters that he did not know about including reStart, a United Way partner agency, and we were also able to work with Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception to find bus passes for the family to get to the shelter. He was very relieved to know that we were here 24 hours a day to help guide him. *Permission to share stories was obtained from callers. All calls to United Way 2-1-1 are confidential.
2010 Trends and Statistics United Way 2-1-1 Serves a Diverse Population
Utility and Rent Needs Increase 45000 40000 35000 30000
2010 Caller Ages*
25000
2008
20000
2009
15000
17 & Under 0.2%
60 & Over 10.5%
2010
10000 5000
*
0 Electric
Gas
Water
Rent Payment
Rent Deposit
18-39 51.3%
40-59 37.9%
* No Rent Deposit data is available for 2008.
2010 Caller Ethnicity/Race* Other/ Multiracial, 1.8% Hispanic/Latino, 3.7%
Health Related Caller Needs Through partnerships with health organizations and the work of our Health Care Advocate, United Way 2-1-1 has been able to connect thousands of callers with health related services. Health related needs have increased from 6226 in 2009 to 7356 in 2010.
Asian, 0.4%
American Indian/Alaskan, 0.4%
Caucasian, 38.5% African American, 55.1%
2010 Health Related Caller Needs Disability, 499
Prescription Assistance, 1364
Mental Health, 860
2010 Caller Employment/ Income Status*
Other Health, 1205 Dental Care, 1150 Medical Transportation, 182 Medical Equip/Supplies, 274 Medical Expense Assistance, 288
Health Clinics, 846 Medical/Health Information, 340
Glasses/Contact Lenses, 348
* Almost half of callers do not answer demographic questions; information provided here represents only those individuals who answered these questions.
Part of YOUR Community United Way 2-1-1 Partnerships United Way 2-1-1 proudly partners with many organizations in Kansas City and surrounding communities in our service area to better serve you! Following are just a few examples of our partners. w Voluntary Income Tax Assistance (VITA) centers. United Way 2-1-1 helps people locate sites providing free tax preparation by IRS-certified volunteers. w Army Community Service Ft. Leavenworth. This data partner now utilizes our online resource database to provide information to their military families w KC Community Organizations Active in Disaster. COAD is a partnership of local organizations that provide assistance in disaster situations w Johnson County Government/Case Worker Resource Center. This data partner developed a specialized database for county case workers utilizing 2-1-1 data. w Kansas City Project Hope. Project Hope provides housing services to individuals who are screened by United Way 2-1-1 w Operation Promise Land. This community action group utilizes referral information from 2-1-1 to help in the 64110 area. w Safe Havens for Newborns Coalition. This coalition was formed to increase awareness of the Safe Haven laws, which allow parents considering harming their newborns to bring them to local Safe Havens (hospitals, fire stations, etc.). United Way 2-1-1 provides information about the laws and provides referrals to the nearest Safe Haven. Signs like the one on the right are placed at local Safe Havens.
United Way 2-1-1 Advisory Committee Audrey Langworthy, Community Volunteer (Chair) Olivia Dorsey, KMBC TV & KCWE TV Gabriela Flores, Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics Denny Kurogi, Johnson County Community College Dr. Paula Livingston, Jackson County Health Dept. Matthew D. Meyer, American Red Cross Susan Miller, Rose Brooks Center Marlene Nagel, Mid-America Regional Council Gene Wilson, Community Volunteer Kristi Wyatt, Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce
United Way 2-1-1 Funding Partners