WILKES-BARRE, PA – The Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania (FSA) recently received a $750 grant from the Community Giving Foundation: Selinsgrove in support of the nonprofit’s Pennsylvania 211 Northeast / Help Line program that provides free information and referrals to emergency health and human services.
The grant supports FSA’s PA 211 NE / Help Line, a free and confidential information and referral service that helps people in Selinsgrove face life’s challenges by connecting them to local resources. The 211 service is available 24-hours a day, seven-days a week, 365 days a year. The service saves time and frustration by eliminating the need to navigate a maze of health and human service agencies by organizing all available resources in one localized database.
Contacting 211 connects people to highly trained professionals who can address a diverse set of needs. The database provides information that connects people with vital services to address food and housing insecurity, crisis management, emergency shelter, vaccination sites, health clinics, domestic violence, utility and rent assistance, home-delivered meals, mental health, drug and alcohol services, and much more.
“On behalf of the people we serve through PA 211 NE in the greater Selinsgrove area, I want to thank the Community Giving Foundation: Selinsgrove and its donors for their generous support,” said Janyne Gurnari, interim chief executive officer of Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania. “Together, we have been able to provide the safety net people need during emergencies and other challenges in their daily lives. Through our collaborative approach, we have been able to lessen the impact of those obstacles on the people and communities we aim to life up.”
The Community Giving Foundation began as the Berwick Health and Wellness Fund in 1999 after the sale of Berwick Hospital. In 2003, it became a regional foundation and was renamed the Community Giving Foundation in December 2020. Today, the foundation has more than 300 funds and about $80 million in assets to serve a 5½-county service area. Annually, the foundation, including the Community Giving Foundation: Selinsgrove, awards more than $2.8 million in grants for the betterment of the region.
“The Community Giving Foundation and its board of directors carefully review the many grant applications that are made annually in support of our regional communities,” said M. Holly Morrison, D.Ed., president and CEO of the Community Giving Foundation. “The PA 211 Northeast service that Family Service Association provides has proven to be a lifeline for many residents who have been impacted by the pandemic or other challenges that can affect their livelihoods. We are proud to be able to support this service for our residents.”
A group of involved and concerned members of the community established FSA in 1895 in order to provide diverse services that empower children, individuals, seniors and families to reach their full potential by building healthier relationships, and ultimately stronger communities.
Today, FSA’s 13 programs provide services to residents in 17 counties, including Bradford, Clinton, Columbia, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Lycoming, Monroe, Montour, Northumberland, Pike, Snyder, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Wayne and Wyoming counties. Any resident in PA 211 NE’s coverage area can access PA 211 NE / Help Line by calling 211, texting 211 (898-211, plus a zip code), or by logging on to www.pa211ne.org.
For more information about FSA or to support its programs, please log on to www.fsanepa.org, call, (570) 823-5144 or email, families@fsanepa.org.