By Ken Gibson
The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay has distributed 150,000 plastic 2-1-1 information cards to Student Services staff working in Hillsborough County Public Schools. Boxes of cards were distributed to Student Services staff at a school district professional planning day at Riverview High School on August 3.
The cards remind people that help and connections to community resources can be found 24 hours a day through a simple phone call to 2-1-1. Funds to print the cards were provided by TECO.
In addition, Crisis Center of Tampa Bay President & CEO, Clara Reynolds, did a presentation to the school counselors and provided an overview of Crisis Center of Tampa Bay services.
“School counselors and teachers are community heroes. They help to mold and shape the next generation, but they can’t do everything for the kids and their families. People in our community need to know they can call 2-1-1. That number is a community gateway where they can have a confidential conversation and be connected to help.” said Clara Reynolds President & CEO of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
“TECO is proud to support this important initiative,” said Holly Miller Moore, regional manager of Tampa Electric and Peoples Gas. “By helping to provide resources like these cards, we’re helping to empower and educate families and grow stronger and safer communities.”
This is the second year in a row the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay has worked with Hillsborough County Public Schools to distribute 2-1-1 cards. In 2017, over 60,000 cards were distributed to high school students. This year cards will be distributed to elementary and middle school students in August with additional cards being distributed to high school students in September.
The mission of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay is to ensure that no one in the community has to face crisis alone. The organization is the community’s gateway to help, hope, and healing, and is Tampa Bay’s elite provider of crisis and trauma services.
Responding to over 160,000 requests for help each year, the nonprofit agency offers a range of evidence based programs designed to meet community needs:
• Corbett Trauma Center (trauma counseling and sexual assault survivor services)
• TransCare (9-1-1 emergency and mental health ambulance services, medical van transportation)
• Gateway Contact Center (2-1-1: suicide prevention, crisis counseling, and information and referral services)
For more information, please visit www.crisiscenter.com.
