Our guest speaker for Friday, August 21st via ZOOM was Lisa Hull, Program Manager for North Sound 211. What is North Sound 211? It is important to note that 2-1-1 is a free confidential community service and your one stop connection to the local services you need: from utility assistance, food, housing, health care, child care, after school programs, elder care, crisis intervention and much, much more. North Sound 211 covers Island, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish and Whatcom counties. Throughout Washington, there are seven unique regions within 2-1-1 statewide information and referral systems. Each region supports local human service programs for residents in their area.
North Sound 2-1-1 is affiliated with Volunteers of America and is a confidential source. No names, no birth information, just dealing with specific needs of individuals. It is FREE. Where available, 2-1-1 is operated by Volunteers of America, a private non-profit organization with a long history which was founded in 1886 spreading to Western Washington in 1898.
One program manager oversees coordination with the other six Washington State 2-1-1 centers. They work to meet professional standards and quality indicators to improve program performance as well as growing new programs. Lisa commented that 2-1-1 is under utilized and partners with the State Department of Health. All call centers are involved with the COVID-19 call centers. And, 2-1-1 is sub-contracted with the DSHS to assist in getting people signed up for basic food assistance. Coordinated entry is a way to help those seeking housing and services access appropriate programs more efficiently.
Funding for 2-1-1 comes from multiple sources from the county CARES ACT to other local organizations. 2-1-1 is about ten years old in Washington State. They handle approximately 110 calls per day. Grief counseling is available as well.