WHITE PLAINS – The United Way has reached its 10th anniversary of providing free 2-1-1 referral services to Hudson Valley residents and has just announced it has expanded that availability to 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The call line serves residents in Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties.
An average of 2,000 callers a month are served by specialists who can answer questions about food assistance, elder care, housing and shelters, utilities, abuse prevention, suicide, recycling regulations, foster parenting, veterans services, medical assistance and more.
Before August 1, the 2-1-1 helpline was open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Alana Sweeney, the president of United Way of Westchester and Putnam, which operates the service, said the hours were expanded in part based on need that was highlighted in a report issued last fall on working poor families. It showed that some one-third of Westchester, Putnam and Rockland residences had incomes that were insufficient to meet basic needs even though they lived well above the poverty line.
The 2-1-1 call line and access to vital services helps those families to survive, Sweeney said.
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