Representatives for nonprofits, churches and other area stakeholders came together today with Indiana 2-1-1 and the Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne to discuss their collective impact on the community.
The gathering was one step in the foundation’s Collaborate For Change strategy released in December. Chief Impact Officer Alison Gerardot said the first goal is to increase awareness of various resources in the community.
“Particularly we wanted to focus on our immigrant and refugee populations," she said. "We know that over 50% of the Hispanic population does not know about or is not accessing nonprofit services and so we really want to make sure that we’re serving those populations and making sure that they’re aware of the services.”
She said they wanted to begin by making 2-1-1 the premiere resource and increase calls. Indiana 2-1-1, a division of the Family and Social Services Administration, is a free and confidential service that anyone in the state can call to find resources in their community, any time of day.
This session focused on housing, utility assistance and food need to determine what services are already available and what services need adjustment. Gerardot said the ultimate goal is to leave the conversation with strategies on how to better make an impact.
