The United Way of Southwest Michigan is recognizing National 211 Day Today.
The United Way of Southwest Michigan’s Zack East tells us the FCC in 2000 set aside 211 as a national hotline anyone can call to learn about assistance that could be available to them. He says there’s a wide range of support you can learn about by calling 211. Many of the calls are about food, utility, and housing assistance. However, new circumstances are always creating new reasons for people to reach out.
“As things especially change right now with the funding that’s occurring or the discussions of budgets at the federal and state levels, as resources become available or as resources change, 211 has access to that information and is really the best resource to get residents connected,” East said.
East says there were more than 17,000 calls to 211 in the Southwest Michigan region during the service’s last funding cycle. However, the message about 211 still needs to be promoted.
“There’s still, of course, people that we come across every day and every week that don’t know that this great service exists and that they can use it for free and actually use it in more than one way.”
East says the United Way of Southwest Michigan is a big backer of 211 in our region. If you’re looking for help, you can call or text 211 24 hours a day and learn about what’s available.
East says an increasing number of people use 211 each year as the population of people with inadequate incomes grows. He urges supporters of 211 to let their lawmakers know about its importance to the community.
