2-1-1 Makes Headlines Throughout the Region

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

Last week, United Way released data about 2-1-1 for the nine-county Bay Area, which indicated call volume surged 39% last year.   Several media outlets reported on the surge in demand – click the links below to read or listen to news coverage.

KCBS Radio – 211 Social Service Assistance Calls on the Rise
Contra Costa Times – Calls to 211 [...]

Earn It! Keep It! Save It! Kicks Off This Week

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

In a time of layoffs and foreclosures, there’s some good news for low-income taxpayers in the Bay Area: instead of spending up to $360 on commercial tax preparation services, households that earned less than $52,000 in 2009 can have their taxes prepared for free by Earn It! Keep It! Save It!, the Bay Area’s largest [...]

Quote of the Day

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

We have a lot of folks who really need care. Transportation is an issue for many of our clients and, being the county’s second largest city, it would be great to have some services, like easily accessible health care.”
                           – American Canyon Family Resource Center Executive Director Sherry Tennyson
From the Times-Herald article, “Napa County looks into [...]

Dial 2-1-1 for Sandbags

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

Several Bay Area cities and counties are offering free sandbags to residents who are concerned about flooding due to this week’s winter storms. To find out if sand bags are available in your area, call 2-1-1.
2-1-1 is available in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma Counties. Residents who cannot [...]

Help Make Tax Time Less Taxing

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

You can help low-wage families hold on to more of their hard-earned money.   United Way is now recruiting volunteers for Earn It! Keep It! Save It!, a program that provides free tax assistance to hardworking, low-income taxpayers throughout the Bay Area.   Last year, the program helped 47,166 Bay Area households claim $47 million in refunds.
Participating taxpayers save up to [...]

SparkPoint Inspires Hope

by Maria Stokes | 1 Comment

Caroline Mack said she thought she was going to jail, because that’s what the creditors were telling her.
Her husband took care of everything, so when he died two years ago, things quickly began to deteriorate for the 52-year-old mother of two.
The Belize native said she’s not sure where she’d be now if she hadn’t found [...]

Meet the Experts: Aimee Durfee, VP of Community Investments, North Bay

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

Based in United Way’s Vallejo office, Aimee Durfee develops partnerships and oversees United Way’s investments in Solano and Napa Counties. Aimee playfully characterizes her job as “being nosy” – “I try to figure out what gaps exist in the community and poke around until I can find the partners who can come together and create [...]

2-1-1 Offers Help for Helpers

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

2-1-1 is a time-saving tool for social workers, clergy, doctors, legislators and other professional “helpers.”
Donna Hite, receptionist for Catholic Social Services in Vallejo, refers an average of four callers a day to 2-1-1.
“Most of our clients are in very stressful situations when they call us,” Donna said.  “While we can provide one or two services [...]

Call 2-1-1 for FREE Summer Meals for Kids

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

Communities throughout the Bay Area have started free summer meal programs for children, serving meals on weekdays throughout the summer at summer-school and community sites. All children 18 years old and younger are eligible, regardless of their families’ income.
NOTE: Because of funding cuts, many school districts and community organizations that have previously served summer meals [...]

United Way in the News: Bailout for Seniors

by Maria Stokes | 0 comments

United Way’s 2-1-1 was featured this week in Betty Rhode’s “Senior Corner” column in the Napa Valley Register:
Feeling pinched by the recession? Fortunately, there are resources in Napa County available for seniors who need their own “bailout” plan. Sometimes the solution can be as simple as pinpointing one or two areas where you’re having trouble. [...]

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