Success Stories: 2-1-1 Lake County 2013

Most clients who contact 2-1-1 Lake County are in need of a service and they do not know where else to call to connect. When they call, they are provided the information and referrals needed to get started in seeking solutions to their problems. While we cannot often site individual successes, we believe all callers are successful in that they are able to begin their journey to self-sufficiency, or at least get their basic needs met because they are provided accurate information and referrals. Below are a couple of examples of calls we received in the last year.

Flooded with help

During the county wide flood in July of 2013, a 2-1-1 Information and Referral Specialist received a call for an individual who resided in Wickliffe. The daughter was calling for her 79 year old mother who was receiving treatment for lung cancer. The mother was also diagnosed with an advanced stage of Alzheimer’s and was insisting that all wet items could remain in the basement. The basement of the mother’s home was flooded, needed to be cleaned and sanitized. The daughter could not assist as she suffered from severe asthma and there were no other family members. All of the surrounding neighbors were addressing their own flooding problems and couldn’t assist, either. Lake County 2-1-1 arranged for the Red Cross to do an assessment and the Lake County Citizens Corp to help with the clean-up. Later 2-1-1 Lake County received a call from the daughter who stated the she and her mother were very thankful that 2-1-1 was there to help them and did not know what she would have done if 2-1-1 had not been there.

Help for an abused elderly parent

A 2-1-1 Information and Referral Specialist received a call from the frantic son of an 83 year old woman who suffered physical abuse by a family member. The woman had allowed her daughter and son-in-law to reside with her. The night before 2-1-1 received the call, the daughter had thrown the 83 year old woman to the floor and sat on her, causing injuries. The son was advised to immediately contact Adult Protective Services. The son again called back and wanted to file eviction papers, and he was very confused, upset, and driving around as he was unsure of what court to contact. The 2-1-1 Operator contacted the appropriate court and then advised the son what court to file the eviction papers in.