2-1-1 Confidential Helps Poughkeepsie Residents In Need Find Help

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. -- If you or someone you know in Poughkeepsie needs help, dial 2-1-1 for free access to information and referrals to services that provide basic needs, including food, clothing and shelter; legal services; drug treatment; employment support; child care, elder care and more.

Volunteers for United Way of Westchester and Putnam's 2-1-1 helpline help field hundreds of calls daily.
Photo Credit: *Courtesy of United Way of Westchester and Putnam*

K Reakes

02/20/2016 6:00 a.m.

The confidential helpline, funded by United Way of the Dutchess-Orange County region, is available from 9 a.m.-7 p.m. seven days a week. It is staffed by knowledgeable and caring call specialists who can communicate with callers in over 150 languages, as well as TTY for the hearing-impaired.

Every hour of every day, hundreds of people in the Hudson Valley and thousands of people in the United States need essential human care services -- from substance abuse assistance to adequate care for a child or an aging parent -- and people often don't know where to turn. In many cases, people end up going without these necessary and readily available services because they do not know where to start.

2-1-1 makes it possible for people to more successfully navigate the complex and ever-growing maze of human service agencies and programs. By making services easier to access, 2-1-1 helps people to get assistance when a problem first develops – rather than allowing a problem to grow.

If residents have trouble contacting 2-1-1, they should dial 1-800-899-1479 or click here.

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