211 has tickets to KVMR's Celtic Festival and we want to give them to you!  

Like us on Facebook and enter a drawing to win two free day passes to this year's Celtic Festival, taking place September 26th through 28th at the Nevada County Fairgrounds.  

The drawing will be held at 10am on Tuesday, September 23rd. We will contact the winner on Facebook.

"I'm calling to find out where my 4 year old and I can stay tonight."

Here at 211 Nevada County we hear this kind of request more than you might think. Calls for housing assistance have skyrocketed in the last year, and they often come with requests for food, clothing, and gas to get to work or school. People in our community are struggling as never before and we are reaching a breaking point in the availability of services to assist them.

From my vantage point as 211 Nevada County's call center manager, it is apparent that the need for housing considerably outweighs the available resources. Over the past nine months, I have answered hundreds of housing calls and heard personal accounts of those who have become homeless. For some it happens suddenly, as when a rental unit is "red-flagged" by county or city staff or a relationship or roommate arrangement falls apart. For others, the path to homelessness is more gradual: a person becomes ill, loses a job, or has unforeseen expenses and is eventually evicted or foreclosed upon because they can't pay the rent or mortgage. Particularly troubling are calls involving families with small children who are without homes and living in a car or sleeping outdoors. We have recently had a handful of callers who have been released from the hospital following surgery and have no other option than to return to camping outdoors. Preparing for job interviews, getting the kids to school on time, or recovering from major surgery is tough enough as it is. Consider these challenges if you don't have electricity, running water, or a clean place to rest.

Temporary shelters have been at capacity for months and affordable apartments are reporting lengthy wait lists. During the summer months, camping may be an uncomfortable but feasible option. Soon, however, harsh winter weather conditions will add possible health risks to the already challenging situation of living outdoors. The opening of Salvation Army's warming shelter requires the projected temperature to fall below 28 degrees, "significant" rain with a low of 32 degrees, or snow covering the ground with a low of 32 degrees. When the temperature begins to drop, our call volume goes up, but we often don't have a referral to give.

Through contact with clients and service providers, we at 211 Nevada County are learning each day about the needs of our neighbors without housing, the community services available to meet those needs, and the gaps in services. 211 is launching this blog in the spirit of furthering the discussion on homelessness and its many facets by sharing information--both the data that we collect and any outside articles, studies, or ideas that catch our eye--with the hope that discussion may lead to action.  

Check out the blog here. 

- Alice Johnson, Call Center Manager 

Click on the image to view as a PDF

211 Nevada County experienced record-setting call volume for the month of August, with a total of 703 calls. This includes 93 calls from Butte County as part of a new partnership with Butte 211 to answer their after-hours calls.

The number of calls to 211 have been steadily rising (see graph at right) and we have seen a 270% increase in call volume since this time last year. Many thanks to all of our partners who continue to help us get the word out about 211.

Click on the image to view a PDF of the report

The August 2014 211 Report is now available.  

This data represents our service delivery, but does not represent the capacity at which we can report statistics. If you have  questions about your specific sector, please do not hesitate to give us a call at 211. This data belongs to you.