United Way of Lancaster County is convening a summit next week at the Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences to commemorate 211 Day.
The keynote will be an appearance by U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa. The day will wrap up with United Way’s rollout of its 2023 Level Up & Launch grant program.
211 Day Summit
211 Day was created to build awareness of the 211 social services hotline. The local United Way staffs the PA 211 East network, which serves Lancaster County and six other counties in central and eastern Pennsylvania, providing one-stop referrals 24/7 to shelter and housing services, food banks, state assistance programs and more.
The 211 Day Summit will begin at 9 a.m. Friday, Feb. 10, the day before 211 Day itself on Saturday (Feb. 11, or 2-11). It continues through 2:30 p.m., and breakfast and lunch will be provided.
Casey is scheduled to take part in a lunchtime Q&A on his ongoing efforts to pass federal legislation to create and fund a unified social services referral network.
Besides the discussion with Sen. Casey, the summit will feature a panel discussion on 211, an array of workshops on Lancaster County social services and capacity building for nonprofits, and a demonstration of a “closed loop” referral system being piloted by PA 211 East, which allows outcomes to be tracked when clients are referred to third-party agencies.
The College of Health Sciences is at 850 Greenfield Road, Lancaster, in the Greenfield Business Park.
How to register
Click here to learn more about the 211 Day Summit and the Level Up & Launch Grant Announcement and sign up for tickets. Space is limited. Half-day tickets are $25, full-day tickets are $50. Free tickets are available to individuals who volunteer at a Lancaster County nonprofit.
Level Up & Launch
Following the summit’s closing remarks at 2:30 p.m., United Way of Lancaster County will host a reception and information session to mark the launch of its 2023 Level Up & Launch grant cycle.
Debuting last year, Level Up & Launch provides “impact grants” for innovative initiatives that address community priorities and have potential to be scaled up.
The grant process this year will have a greater focus on equity, United Way of Lancaster County President & CEO Kevin Ressler said.
As was the case in 2022, up to $250,000 will be awarded. Recipients will then be invited to raise additional funding, which will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to the amount of their initial grant. United Way will thus provide up to $500,000 toward total leveraged funding of $750,000.
