asheville, United Way's 2-1-1 Now Accessible by Cell Phone

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United Way's 2-1-1 Now Accessible by Cell Phone

2-1-1 now accessible from cell phones ASHEVILLE – As of July 31, 2008, United Way’s 2-1-1 of WNC is available from cell phones. United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County President David Bailey announced that people can now access 2-1-1 community information and referral services on cell phones from any of the six major providers in North Carolina. 2-1-1 is excited that citizens will be able to locate services more easily than ever before.

Cell phone use is at an all-time high. Eighty-six percent of American households now have at least one cell phone, exceeding the number of those that have land lines. The number of people who have cell phones as their exclusive telephone service also continues to climb, particularly among lowincome and minority populations, according to Mediamark Research Inc. Consequently, it is critical that people have access to community information with a call to three easy-to-remember digits from their cell phones, as well as land lines.

Our community is fortunate to have a rich array of nonprofit and governmental community services. However, finding the right service in this maze of resources can be a daunting task. The Alliance of Information and Referral Systems found that it takes the average person seven phone calls to find the right health or human service to meet their need. One simple call to 2-1-1 can get people connected to the right resource the first time.

This effort was made possible by partnerships with:

Charles Thomas, NC state representative from the 116th district, who advocated for 2-1-1 with the primary cell phone carriers in our state;
Alltel, AT&T, Nextel/Sprint, TMobile/SunCom, US Cellular and Verizon (please note that 2-1-1 dialing does not currently work on some prepaid cell phones from other companies);
United Way of North Carolina, with support from the BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina Foundation, which coordinated the process of routing switches and getting 2-1-1 calls directed to the correct call centers; and
County governments and local United Ways in Buncombe, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania Counties.

United Way’s 2-1-1 of WNC is a community service information line that links people to health and human services in Buncombe, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania counties. To find out what other communities in North Carolina have 2-1-1 service, visit www.211nc.org. 2-1-1 service is free, multi-lingual, and confidential. Whether you want to find or give help, trained referral specialists are available 24/7 to answer your call and identify the right resources for you. 2-1-1’s online database, www.nc211.org, contains over 2,000 local programs and services, including housing, food, medicine, transportation, support groups, money management, legal assistance, counseling, health care and much more.

For complete information about 2-1-1 in North Carolina, including a service area map, visit www.nc211.org.

(Images provided by United Way.)