Orange County NC Website
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i ~- <br />Information/Access to Services biscussion Circle: <br />Accessibility is recognized as an essential component when it comes to <br />accommodating the needs of those who are in need of services. If you ignore the <br />needs of a large section of your target audience, they will not know about services <br />or use services. As the aging population grows and their needs for particular <br />services cultivate, any and everything should be made available to ensure them a <br />healthy lifestyle. The Orange County's information/access to services discussion <br />was held to discover how to keep people, especially the elderly, informed about <br />needed services. <br />The discussion began with the panel members stating their names and which agency <br />they were representing. Next the moderator had the audience members taking <br />part in the forum introduce themselves, what agency they were representing, and <br />what they would like to gain from the discussion. When questioned why she had <br />participants introduce themselves, Gwen Harvey, the moderator stated that she <br />wanted everyone to know the wants and needs of each other and to be able to <br />network. The participants of the forum included budget analysts, students, <br />librarians and individuals representing their respected agencies, area schools, <br />transportation departments, health and human services, and local government. <br />The panel discussion started off with l.ula Ann Johnson of Triangle United Way. <br />She talked about the services of 2-1-1. The phone number 2-1-1, started back in <br />2001 for area counties and provides directory assistance for finding community <br />health and human service resources. ~ This number, that now houses information for <br />16 different counties throughout the state of North Carolina, has information for <br />nearly 20,000 nonprofits throughout the state. The Triangle United Way is now <br />trying to receive funding from Z. Smith Reynolds, a North Carolina based <br />organization that helps fund programs that improve the quality of life of the <br />people of North Carolina, to expand its services statewide. 2-1-1 is a free service <br />with multilingual representatives and is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year <br />providing a link to vital services in the community. <br />For Internet users, information cnn be obtained via web at www.nc211.org . The <br />same information that can be obtained by calling the telephone number may also be <br />obtained on the website. There are several options available to make the online <br />searches easier, either by city, county, zip code or agency. Johnson would like <br />each agency to be added to the Triangle United Wny's online database and <br />Page 11 of 18 <br />