Guest Speaker: Dawn Littlefield
For years, 911 emergency operators have been forced to field calls for non-emergency matters...ranging from cats stuck in a tree, to requests for information on social service agencies. This problem will soon go away, as DeKalb County becomes the latest region of Illinois to join in with an informational direct-dial service.
Kishwaukee United Way Executive Director Dawn Littlefield says the agency is spearheading the effort to get DeKalb County involved in the 211 phone answering system; this 24-hour hotline is manned with personnel who have access to a computer database, with information and referral numbers on a wide range of topics. This service will be especially useful for poorer and elderly persons, who for one reason or another can't access the internet.
Littlefield is part of a campaign to get as many social service providers as possible to join in with them; their names and information will be compiled into a database, and will be constantly updated. She says the goal is to launch 211 service in the county this spring.
Sponsors are also needed, to foot the cost of setting up this service; several individuals and organizations have already contributed, but more will be needed as 211 service gets off the ground.