Three simple numbers – 211 – have offered hope for people struggling with housing, hunger, addiction and other mental health and social issues for decades. Those three little numbers connect people with vital resources and support systems, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with specialists fluent in English, Spanish and Creole, ensuring that language barriers do not hinder someone from receiving the help they need.
When a desperate mother called worried about feeding her children, the Palm Beach/Treasure Coast 211 service sprang into action and connected her with local food banks and other organizations that provided meals and groceries. When a teen called feeling overwhelmed by anxiety and depression, the 211 service became a lifeline with trained professionals offering emotional support and connections to mental health services. And when a lonely senior just needed a friendly check-in, dedicated 211 specialists lent an empathetic ear and offered help when needed.
“We get over 100,000 calls for help each year,” said Chad Adcock, community outreach representative for 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast. “Unfortunately, those numbers are always increasing. I equate our services to windshield wipers on a car. You don’t know they need replacing until the storm happens and they don’t work. We’re kind of like the windshield wipers in the storm. That could be a literal storm or figurative storm. It doesn’t matter what you are going through in life, 211 is here to help.
“We provide services for literally anyone, regardless of age,” Adcock continued. “We have professionals to help provide the answers and referrals for the resources you need for your specific problem. On top of that we have numerous advocacy outreach programs available to all.”
Adcock stated that the latest trends in crisis calls are related to affordable housing, mental health/suicide and substance abuse. All three of those are downstream effects of what we’ve experienced during the past three years.
“The mental health crisis we are going through is directly related to the pandemic. It’s what they call the third phase of a crisis following the physical and economic phases. Typically, the third mental health phase comes 18 months after a crisis,” Adcock said.
“Suicide is on the rise, especially with young people. It’s the only cause of death that is 100 percent preventable. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, there is always someone here to help at 211. There’s also a new 988 number (suicide prevention hotline) that will get you the same help and resources. Both numbers ring into our local call center.”
“There have been over 3 million requests for help during the agency’s 50-year history,” Sharon L’Herrou, president and CEO of the 211 Helpline, states on the agency website (211palmbeach.org).
A graph detailing the most frequent service requests from June 21, 2022, through June 21, 2023, shows the top three requests for help relate to mental health and addiction concerns (27.4 percent), government and legal concerns (22.8 percent), and housing and shelter needs (20.3 percent).
211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast is more than just a helpline – it’s a robust hub of information. Tapping into an extensive database of resources, including food banks, government programs, community organizations and support groups, trained specialists direct callers to agencies that provide financial assistance, healthcare services, childcare, senior care and legal aid. They are skilled at navigating the complex web of services to ensure that the caller receives the most appropriate and beneficial support.
“An individual in crisis shouldn’t be afraid to call as their conversation is strictly confidential and they don’t have to volunteer any personal information if they don’t want to,” Adcock added.
“211 services are provided at no cost to anyone, regardless of race, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation or disability. All of our funding comes from corporate sponsors and private donations.”
Established in Palm Beach County in 1971, 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast was originally a drug hotline that quickly expanded into crisis counseling and suicide prevention.
In 1981, United Way funded the effort to provide information and referral services creating a centralized access point for health and human services and crisis services. In 2000, the three-digit dialing code 2-1-1 was designated nationally by the FCC for information and referral purposes and it became the agency’s helpline.
Then in 2001, the agency expanded its service area to the Treasure Coast, serving the residents of Martin, St. Lucie, and Okeechobee counties and, in 2005, Indian River County, allowing it to help even more people.
211 is the designated agency to answer all local calls dialed into the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and since 2010 has served as the Rape Crisis Victim of Violent Crimes Hotline. 211 also responds as a national Disaster Distress Helpline, a Special Needs Hotline and the Help Me Grow initiative. The agency is constantly upgrading its technological capabilities to meet growing demand and recently launched CHAT and text messaging functions to better serve the public.
“Our crisis intervention professionals are highly trained employees with a minimum of 100 hours in training required before they can ever answer the phone,” Adcock explained.
“They get intensive training in empathetic listening and problem solving. Their calls may range from a mother wanting to know why her 2-year old isn’t talking, to an individual who can’t pay his rent, to a person who just took a bottle of pills and is drinking a bottle of whiskey and doesn’t know what to do.
“To be able to answer all of those calls is very challenging. You need someone well trained to handle all those types of situations. Our crisis specialists are trained to use the right language and answer those calls in compassionate manner.”
Volunteers also play a vital role in helping 211 deliver quality services to those in need. Training is provided for volunteers who want to assist by making daily sunshine check-in phone calls to seniors and housebound individuals, doing intakes and checkups with families, helping at community outreach events, and light office tasks. To inquire about volunteering fill out the volunteer form at 211palmbeach.org or email volunteer@211pbtc.org.
211 Palm Beach is accredited by the American Association for Suicidology (AAS), the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems (AIRS) and locally by NonProfits First.
Additionally, 211 staff are individually certified by AIRS and by the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence. Remember – free help is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Just call 211.