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May 11, 2012
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PHO TO BY JO AN N E ZU H L
A day in the life of 211info’s call center
OK. ”... “I ’ve never seen so many people
S T A F F W R IT E R
hurting and suffering...”
The specialist refers her to some places
ou can hear it, from many miles away,
that might be able to help, programs that
that vacillation between hope and
get dozens of hits each day, each hour,
defeat grinding within men and
during my visit. But the resources are
women as they try to hold it together for the
limited well below the demand. Since
duration of one phone call.
January, more than 5,000 people have called
They don’t always make it.
211info for energy assistance, just from
“We’re just beside ourselves. We’ve never
been in this situation before and we don’t know Multnomah County. In addition to those
calls, the organization’s automated utility
what to do. ”
assistance message was listened to more
The woman is talking with a 211info call
than 2,500 times in that same period.
center specialist. She called the referral
The callers include a woman, age 33, who
service line to find help with utility
has three children in-the house living on her
payments. It is the most frequent request
husband’s minimum-wage income. They’ve
the statewide service receives. Spend a day
already received the shut-off notice. As did
listening to the calls, as I did from 10 a.m.
another caller, who received assistance
to 5 p.m. one Monday, and the vast spider
before, but needs it again. He can’t keep up
web of poverty begins to take shape. Each
call center specialist handles up to 80 calls a with the rent payments, he says, plus paying
for his own insurance, which he has to have
day. Last year, they fielded more than
for his diabetes. He’s 51.
120,000 calls, with another 120,000
“I ’m afraid tomorrow morning they’re going
inquiries coming through 211 s website.
to shut me off. And I have diabetes. And now
In this case, the caller is a student and
I ’m scared. I thought I could make the $100
she has no income. Her husband has been
but I came up short. I just need a little bit of
holding on to the promise of work, but the
help. ”
project in question is behind schedule, and
He is audibly crying.
the company is not yet ready for his
aI feel so bad. I hate to ask for any help.”
services. Their daughter is disabled and
The specialist directs him to programs
lives with them, along with their daughter s
that can offer utility assistance, if there is
boyfriend who is also out of work. And
any still available. The caller is also directed
there’s a fifth person in the household, a
to services to find a more affordable living
friend whose circumstances required a place
situation to help cut costs. Because next to
to stay.
utility assistance, people need help staying
In trying to stay up on rent, they ve fallen
in their homes. More than 2,000 callers in
hundreds of dollars behind on utilities.
Multnomah County called for rent assistance
Unemployment benefits ran out in
between January and March. People on the
December. There will be no insurance until
verge of being evicted, like one man whose
her husband is back to work.
monthly rent for his family, a wife and two
Having outlined her situation, the caller,
kids. His income is less than $1,000 in a
who is 53, begins to cry.
good month, and rent takes more than half
“I can’t tell you what that does to a person.
It’s the scariest thing there is. I f we can just get of that.
“(The notice says) if it’s not paid by the
through this little pinch, we know we’ll be
BY JOANNE ZUHL
Y
13th, we’re out. I have 10 days to fix it. ’ I see
this paper every year. I ’m working hard to find
a job. But it’s not easy to find a job. I ’m about
to lose this home. ”
He has a toddler and an infant daughter.
There is no family in the region to turn to,
he says. He was earnest at the start of the
call, but now his voice grows hushed. He
sighs heavily.
“It bothers me every day. I think, ‘what can
I do? What do I do now?”’
And the conversation turns to the option
of a family shelter - if they do get evicted.
The caller coughs uncomfortably.
“Wow” he utters softly.
But there could be options before that
stage, and the specialist finds a few
apartment buildings offering rooms that
could be more affordable to the family, if
they’re still available. She reads off the
names, addresses and phone numbers. The
caller’s earnest voice returns, and he
promises to call every one.
TX7£ are hamng the worst year of our life.
W My son had a mental breakdown. It’s
just been hell. ”
The caller, a man, is looking for help for
his son. His wife just had an operation, and
he is scheduled for one in the coming
month. He can’t remember the name of an
agency that had helped him before, which
he hopes will help him again. He needs help
with rent and utilities. As he outlines his
situation, he - like others - finds it
emotionally overwhelming. He breaks down
in tears while the specialist searches for the
organization he needs.
“I ’m going in for back surgery and I ’m
scared to death. I sure would like to have a
home to come home to. ”
Far above this intimate exchange, in full
view from across the call center, a digital
information board displays the activity.
There are now six calls in the queue waiting
for an open specialist to answer.
The specialist finds the program the man
is looking for, and lists several others that
might help cover peripheral costs. Within a
minute, as the conversation draws to a
close, there are 10 people in the queue
waiting for an open line.
Not everyone who calls is in dire straits.
Some just don’t know who to call or where
to begin looking for an affordable apartment.
Others just need a phone number. The
211info call center handles not only 211
calls, but also the SafeNet calls for maternal
and child health care, and the regional
affordable housing network, Housing
Connections. Beyond matters of crisis, 211
fields calls for parenting resources,
counseling, legal assistance, jobs training
and many preventative programs.
One caller needs to find a treatment
center for her teen-age son. It needs to be
residential and for juveniles. She has no
income. It’s not an easy search, but there
are programs that might help.
Another caller is looking for a women’s
shelter for her sister-in-law and her five kids,
all under the age of 10.
“She doesn’t have anywhere to go. ... We just
don’t have the room to take five kids. We
already have five in a three-bedroom house with
one bathroom. ”
The number in the queue dips to six then
flickers back upward - eight, then 10, and
then 12, within half a minute.
From their individual booths, the
specialists are able to instant message each
other, like when a caller speaks only
Spanish, the message is sent out, and the
See HOLDING THE LINE page 5