In this website so far we have talked mostly about resources and assistance to help you with your housing needs. But in order to really recover from the Hurricane Sandy, you may need some other help as well. It may be challenging to find the services you need to keep yourself and your family going. You may need something as basic as day care for your toddler, or as complex as grief counseling to help you deal with what you lost. Perhaps you need to find substance abuse and mental health treatment for a family member or friend. How can you find out about what services are available and where they are offered?
There is not space in this guide to list every social service offered in every affected community. There are just too many to list, and besides, the list changes as new services become available or existing ones end.
Instead, in the state Resource Guides at Route 4 we direct you to some important nonprofit and faith-based groups that serve as resource and information hubs. These groups are likely to know where you can go to get the help you need. If the help you and others need isn’t available, these groups can work with volunteer or public officials to fill that gap in services.
2-1-1 ”An Easy Connection to Human Services"
Several years ago, United Way launched a national effort to establish 2-1-1 phone numbers. It’s based on the success of the 911 emergency system, where you can call and request help from police or fire and rescue. In the same way, a 2-1-1 number allows you to dial just those three numbers and get connected to any human service organization operating in the area covered (depending on your location, it may be a city, a region, or statewide). The Resource Guides at Route 4 provides local 2-1-1 information. You may also visit www.211.org and enter your zip code for additional information on your local 2-1-1.
Red Cross
Red Cross disaster relief meets people’s immediate needs when a disaster occurs. The Red Cross provides shelter, food, and health and mental health services to address basic human needs. In addition to these services, the Red Cross helps people affected by disaster to get back to their normal lives. One way they do this is by providing clean-up supplies to flood survivors so they can get their houses ready to live in again.
The Red Cross also feeds emergency workers, handles calls from concerned family members outside the disaster area, provides blood and blood products to disaster victims, and helps people affected by disaster to find other resources they need. For more details visit the website at www.redcross.org.
United Way
United Way agencies raise money from individuals and businesses and use the money to support critical local services. The staff knows a great deal about the local human services system, and if they don't know, the chances are good that someone they know does. United Way created the United Way Hurricane Sandy Recovery Fund. The Fund will be used by local United Ways to support the near- and long-term recovery needs of communities affected by Hurricane Sandy. See www.unitedway.org/blog/entry/united-way-hurricane-sandyrecovery-fund for additional details.
Major Pit Stop Ahead
Now that you've selected a map to guide your journey and identified your Roadside Assistance Crew, you'll want to brake hard for the next big pit stop along Route 3. You'll find out how to steer clear of the warning signs and avoid the pot holes and pitfalls so you can take the most direct route to housing recovery and avoid the heavy traffic (like scams and other such roadblocks) up ahead!