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Our guest speaker this past Friday, January 22nd was Steve Corsi, President and CEO at Volunteers of America Western Washington. The organization is divided into nine circles with six divisions. The nine circles are composed of Hunger Prevention; Behavioral Health; Disability Services; Dispute Resolution Centers; Homelessness Prevention; Maud's House Shelter; Arlington Community Resource Center; Sky Valley Community Resource Center and ECEAP Preschools. Hunger Prevention: the number of Washington residents who struggle to provide three meals a day for their families. The number of families served has doubled from 850,000 individuals before the pandemic to about 1.6 million as of this past May. 103,000 + individuals were provided food at VOA Food Banks, Pantries and Pop-Up Events representing 33,000 households. Mental Health: Multiple studies show a causal relationship between increasing unemployment and increased incidents of suicide. Because of the isolation and social distancing, many adults and teens do not have regular access to supportive relationships. Steve spoke of the Northsound 211 call volume being at 45,245 which is a 46% increase from 2019. Dispute Resolution Services: Addresses conflict resolution needs by providing mediation focusing on disputes related to housing, family, community and workplace. 1,400 families saved from becoming homeless each year and 780 evictions prevented annually or 65 evictions per month. Child & Youth Services: VOA supports 120 vulnerable, low-income at risk through Early Childhood Education Assistance Program providing them being school ready and better prepared for kindergarten. |
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