Stark's 2-1-1 helpline closing Jan. 1, transitioning to StarkHelpCentral.com
Stark County's 2-1-1 helpline will be discontinued in the new year.
Starting Jan. 1, the information line and online database will become a part of StarkHelpCentral.com, a community resource website supported by several Stark County agencies, including Mental Health and Addiction Recovery, Job and Family Services, Family Court and the Board of Developmental Disabilities.
Adrianne Price, vice president of community impact at United Way of Greater Stark County, said 2-1-1 lines across the country have seen a decline in callers in recent years as more people have started using the internet and other ways to obtain information.
"It's not unique to Stark County, but Stark County had a relatively low call volume compared to population," Price said. "So even though the decrease is consistent across the country, the decrease for us is really notable because there weren't that many calls to begin with."
Stark's 2-1-1 received about 17,000 calls per year, she said, while Summit County gets around 80,000 calls.
"With fewer and fewer people calling at a cost of more than $200,000 a year, when we really dug into the numbers, it didn't look like it was an effective use of dollars," Price said. "We try really hard to make sure that we make sound investments. Whether it's a program we're operating or a program we're investing in, those dollars that come from the broader community, we really have to make effective use of those dollars."
The move will establish StarkHelpCentral.com as the county's main source on community resources, according to a news release from United Way of Greater Stark County. Price said the website, which launched in 2018 and houses more than 700 resources related to substance use, mental health and other issues, gets significantly more traffic per year than the 2-1-1 line.
StarkHelpCentral.com breaks down different resources in the community by age group. The website has a user-friendly format that helps people find information they need, Price said.
“StarkHelpCentral.com was forward-thinking when it launched several years back and continues to be relevant as it’s routine for most people to do an online search when they need help today,” said John Aller, executive director of Stark County Mental Health & Addiction Recovery, in a prepared statement. "And United Way is the ideal partner to expand on that with due to the addition of their resources, so now people can visit one site quickly and easily."
Anyone who calls the number after Jan. 1 will receive an automated message telling them to contact their local job and family services or community action agency.
United Way started notifying users about the transition in mid-November, Price said. The agency sent messages to callers who had recently used the 2-1-1 line, notified area organizations and public officials and emailed resource guides containing contact information for the most requested resources in the county to residents of the zip codes where the most 2-1-1 calls came from.
Reach Paige at (330) 580-8577, pmbennett@gannett.com or on Twitter at @paigembenn.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Stark County's 2-1-1 helpline to close next year
