The "help lines" at
the United Way of Allegheny County and
North Hills Community Outreach ring each day year-round, with many Pittsburghers seeking assistance with mounting bills or referrals to state agencies. But last week, as heavy snow blanketed the area, the calls were different, and far more immediate.
"Normally we handle many calls for rent help, utility help and food," says Anne Fogoros of the United Way. "Last week it was all about people who were homebound, worried about getting their medicine or worried about only having a couple of cans of soup." Others called to find locations of warming shelters or ask if homeless shelters were open.
Calls to North Hills Community Outreach were much the same, says Fay Morgan, executive director of NHCO. "One individual called who needed some critical medicine," Morgan says. "We arranged for her to be able to get that… I believe the pharmacy delivered it when they usually don't. This was medicine she could not do without."
Worried residents also called with leaking roofs, fearing the heavy snow might cause the roof to collapse and not knowing where to turn for help.
It was a challenge to provide these services while the organizations' own staffs dealt with the hazardous weather. NHCO was closed two days for safety concerns, including last Tuesday -- the day of the week they normally operate their food pantry. "We'll usually have 60 to 90 people come to the food pantry," says Morgan. "But it had to be canceled last Tuesday," so NHCO opted to give out food on additional days last week.
Many Pittsburgh agencies and nonprofits were closed, says Fogoros, but they worked hard to monitor requests via email.
"I think everyone did a great job in the agencies. We did not want people to fall through the cracks, and that's one area where we did a very good job of making sure if someone called they got help," she says. "We did refer people to 311, did let them know the National Guard was there to help them. Some are reluctant to call, or they didn't know 311 was there for anything but potholes."
With more snow in the forecast, the increased workload for local agencies is likely to continue.
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Writer: Melissa Rayworth
Sources: Anne Fogoros/United Way, Fay Morgan/NHCO
Food pantry image courtesy of NHCO