United Way of North Central Ohio Responds to COVID19 Crisis; Establishes Community Relief Fund

United Way of North Central Ohio (UWNCO) serving Crawford, Marion, and Wyandot is mobilizing to direct resources and support to local agencies during the COVID19 outbreak and its consequences, and has established the UWNCO Community Relief Fund to enable a swift and strategic response to the needs of our local community.

We are already seeing great strain on all community social services, including childcare, emergency food and household necessities, workforce support, services for seniors including meal delivery, mental health services, and more. Local non-profit organizations have cancelled or postponed their own fundraising activities in order to focus on responding to the outbreak and caring for community members. There is an immediate need for funding relief to meet the increased demand for supplies and service, as well as operating expenses that include expanded staffing requirements as hours are extended and high-risk volunteers are unavailable.

UWNCO is still identifying and prioritizing the areas of most vulnerability, but we know the need is there, and will be growing exponentially in the coming months. “We established the Community Relief Fund because there are so many elements that are unknown about the current crisis and its long-term effects on our community,” says Amber Wertman, executive director of United Way of North Central Ohio. “The Fund will allow us to adapt our response with some fluidity as we go along, so that we can make sure that the agencies in most need at each point in time have the resources they need.”

Online donations to the UWNCO Community Relief Fund may be made at www.unitedwaynco.org/donate-now. Donors may also send checks to United Way NCO, 125 Executive Drive, Ste 100, Marion, OH 43302 or donate via phone at 740-383-3108. All donations will be used to support the near- and long-term COVID19 response efforts in our community, and donors may designate funds to be used in Crawford, Marion, or Wyandot counties.

If you have any questions about the Community Relief Fund and how you can help, please contact Amber Wertman at amber@unitedwaynco.org or 419-468-4291 (United Way serving Crawford County); Leslie Schneider at leslie@unitedwaynco.org or 740-383-3108 (United Way serving Marion County); or Pam Morral at pam@unitedwaynco.org or 419-835-2143 (United Way serving Wyandot County).