The Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania (FSA) was presented with a Community Achievement Award on Tuesday, June 8 during the Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber of Commerce’s 2021 EPIC (Extraordinary People Inspiring Community) Awards at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
The EPIC Community Achievement Award recognizes the vital role FSA has played in the greater community since it was founded in 1895 by a group of involved and concerns members of the community. The 125-year-old nonprofit has been providing diverse services to children, individuals, seniors, and families that empower them to achieve their full potential through healthier relationships and stronger communities.
Today, FSA provides 14 programs and services in 17 counties in Northeastern and North-Central Pennsylvania, including Pennsylvania 211 Northeast / Help Line, the Children’s Center of Susquehanna and Wyoming Counties, and the Counseling, Guardianship, ParentChild+, Intensive Family Reunification Services, Family Group Decision Making, High-Risk Youth Re-Entry, Batterers Intervention Service, Turning Points, Anger Management, Family Finding, Outreach Prevention Program, and Specialized Adolescent Assessment Unit programs.
“The Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania has accomplished so much during its first 125 years of service to the people in our communities,” said Gertrude C. McGowan, Esq., chief executive officer of FSA. “Our successes, though, are measured not by our longevity, but by the people we help, the resilient families we develop, and the thriving communities we help to establish.
“Those accomplishments are a tribute to the many people we have served, the benefactors and volunteers who have enabled the Family Service Association to fully live its mission, and the many neighbors who have taken an active and caring role as board members during our history,’’ added McGowan.
FSA’s largest program, PA 211 NE / Help Line, for example, helped the regional communities weather COVID-19, as the global pandemic affected families, businesses and economy. During fiscal year 2021, the information and referral service provider for emergency health and human services is going to provide service to more than 100,000 people by calling 211, texting 211 (898-211, plus a zip code), or logging on to Pa211.org.
FSA has been providing information and referral services since 1972 in response to the needs of residents and government offices after Hurricane Agnes. In 1975, it expanded to after-hours answering services and crisis management. In 2010, FSA became one of the six regional providers of PA 211 in the state, serving a 17-county footprint.
“The Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania continues to grow and adapt to the needs of its clients, stakeholders and communities,” said Megan Kennedy, Esq., chairperson of the FSA Board. “The COVID-19 pandemic tested our resiliency like never before. As an essential business, FSA had to quickly shift to a partially virtual workforce and develop techniques to serve clients safely and efficiently, while also protecting the safety and welfare of our staff.
“Our leadership team and staff successfully addressed and answered those challenges without disruption of services for the people who needed our information and referral services to vital health and human services,’’ she added.
In addition to the Family Service Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania, the EPIC Awards honored Kathi Bankes, Athena Award; Theodore Wampole, Dave Pedri and Will Beeckman, Innovators of the Year Award; Mary Erwine and Sandy Insalaco, Sr., Volunteer of the Year Award, and United Way of Wyoming Valley, Greater Pittston Chamber of Commerce, Maternal Family and Health Services, Inc., Leadership Wilkes-Barre, Diamond City Partnership, and Dress for Success Luzerne County also received Community Achievement Awards.
Caption:
FSA Board Chairperson Megan Kennedy, Esq., and FSA Chief Executive Officer Gertrude C. McGowan, Esq., second row, far right, pose for a picture with other honorees of the evening after accepting the award.