The 2-1-1 pilot began on August 25, 2006! Washington County is one of only 11 jurisdictions in the State of Maryland participating in the Maryland 2- 1-1 pilot. 2-1-1 is an easily remembered telephone number that connects people with an information and referral source for important community resources and volunteer opportunities. An easily remembered number for this purpose will ease citizen's frustration with trying to locate the appropriate service(s) without calling several numbers and will likely reduce the number of inappropriate calls to 9-1-1. During a natural or man-made disaster, 2-1-1 will assist in keeping 9-1-1 phone lines open for emergencies only.

As you may recall, the Washington County Community Partnership for Children & Families (WCCP) entered into a contract with the Mental Health Association of Frederick County (MHA) during the early part of FY 2006. The goal of this project has been to build the MHA's infrastructure for the successful participation of Washington County in the 2-1-1 pilot and eventual full-fledged, Statewide 2-1-1 implementation.

The WCCP and the MHA held a community meeting on October 10, 2006 with Washington County community partners. The MHA is encouraging Washington County partners and their respective customers to dial 2-1-1. The United Way of Central Maryland is developing public awareness materials, which will be disseminated to the 2-1-1 pilot regions following their completion. The MHA asks that, until this occurs, to please only advertise 2-1-1 via word-of-mouth.

If you have additional questions or would like to report any glitches, please contact Suzi Borg, MHA Hotline Director, by dialing 2-1-1! If you or any of your customers are unable to access 2-1-1, please dial 301-663-0011 to reach Ms. Borg.

In May of this year, the Governor's Office for Children (GOC) released an invitation to jurisdictions to negotiate for funding in support of the development of a local System of Care (SOC). On October 6, 2006, the GOC awarded the Western Maryland Partnership (Frederick, Washington, Allegany and Garrett counties) $264,609.00 in local access mechanism funding for fiscal year 2007. This funding will provide for a contract with the Mental Health Association of Frederick County, Inc. (MHA) to utilize their Frederick County Hotline, a 2-1-1 call center, as the 24/7 information and referral (I/R) center for the SOC. In addition, the award allows for the implementation of the systems navigation strategies developed in each of the partnering jurisdictions.

The Washington County Community Partnership for Children & Families (WCCP) and the Local Management Board of Allegany County have elected to partner to develop a regional family navigation strategy. This strategy will entail the provision of family navigators (FN) to assist families of children with intensive needs in navigating the SOC.

The FN, who will have experience as a family member caring for a child with special needs, will be assigned to a family that, based on a brief screening tool, has been determined to have a child, birth through 21 years of age, with intensive behavioral, education, developmental, and/or mental health needs and: 1) the family is not currently linked with, has been ruled as ineligible for, or has exhausted case management services elsewhere; 2) coordination of multiple service agencies is requested; and/or 3) assistance identifying linkages to appropriate resources and services is requested. For calls or walk-ins received at the WCCP, the FN will provide I/R and administer the brief screening tool if warranted based on the family's needs.

The WCCP applied individually and was awarded $4,412.00 for funding to purchase training and to pay stipends to parents who participate in the SOC planning and oversight.

The Washington County Community Partnership for Children & Families (WCCP) sponsored a workshop on October 14 at the Smithsburg Library for parents of children with special needs and the professionals working with them. The WCCP planned this workshop in cooperation with The Parents' Place of Maryland, Partners for Success Family Support Center, Maryland Coalition of Families for Children's Mental Health, Washington County Mental Health Authority, Inc. and Lori Connolly, parent of a child with special needs.

Debbie Green, Parent Educator for The Parents' Place of Maryland, presented a workshop entitled "Effective Advocacy". Participants were offered practical, step-by-step information and tools for use in becoming effective advocates.

The Washington County Board of County Commissioners proclaimed October 2006 as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Carol Bannon of the Washington County Family Violence Council (WCFVC), Vicky Sadevandhi of Citizens Assisting and Sheltering the Abused, Inc. (CASA), and Sheriff's Office Colonel Doug Mullendore accepted the honor from Commissioner Dori Nipps. The WCFVC's mission is to coordinate the community response to address the safety and well-being of abused and neglected adults and children and to hold perpetrators accountable. CASA, a participating agency with the WCFVC, has provided comprehensive services to individuals experiencing family violence since 1977. CASA provided services to 3,433 individuals and responded to 24,354 hotline calls in Washington County from July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2005. The WCFVC, in its endeavor to educate the community on family violence, documented 2,180 incidents of domestic violence in Washington County from January 1, 2005 through June 30, 2006. Approximately, 1,310 children and youth were witnesses to this abuse. The proclamation said that family violence respects no racial, religious class or geographic boundaries and, has reached epidemic proportion in nearly all regions of our nation. The Commissioners urged all citizens to strive to recognize, understand and respond to the needs of family violence victims within our community.

The Washington County Community Partnership for Children & Families (WCCP) would like to extend a warm welcome to the following new board members. Each brings a wealth of knowledge of the issues affecting children and families in Washington County. Their insight will be invaluable as the WCCP presses forward in assessing community needs and developing a strategic plan to address the identified needs for Washington County. To view a full list of the WCCP Board members, please see below.

• Erin Teach, Community Representative - Ms. Teach is the Community Outreach Director for Easter Seals Adult Day Services in Hagerstown. In her current position, she is devising a needs assessment for a future children's service provided by Easter Seals and potential partners.
  
  
• Anne Martin, Community Representative - Ms. Martin is the owner and operator of the Anne Martin Company. She has served as a volunteer at Children In Need, Inc. since 2003 where she has overseen the improvement and expansion of the program. She currently serves as the President of Children In Need, Inc.
  
  
• Mindy Sorensen, Community Representative - Ms. Sorensen is the Assistant Director of Finance with the Housing Authority of the City of Hagerstown (HACH). In her current position, she has developed a thorough knowledge of the funding mechanisms, the services that the HACH provides, and the needs of the at-risk population the HACH serves in Washington County as well as the City of Hagerstown.

The WCCP would also like to express appreciation to Ladetra Robinson for her time and effort while serving on the Board. Ms. Robinson, who had recently been appointed to the Board, resigned her Board seat due to some unforeseen scheduling conflicts.