Friday, April 4, 2014

Sign up to receive info on volunteer needs in Oso

What an incredible response by people wanting to help! We are working in partnership with the Department of Emergency Management to help manage the individual volunteers who have been moved to come up to the landslide area to help volunteer.

The call center has been flooded with phone calls.  That's why we've set up an online form for people interested in volunteering.

We don't have any opportunities at the moment, but when we do, someone will get back to you.

The best thing you can do is go online and get your name on the list for future volunteers. (United Way is managing this effort in partnership with the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management.)
  • Filling out the online form is best.
  • Sending an email is the next best thing you can do (but remember, someone is going to have to enter your name and information into a spreadsheet).
  • Emergency Management is accepting phone calls, but the phone lines are often busy.

Thursday, April 3, 2014

$225K going to Arlington on Friday

As a follow up to yesterday’s presentation of $225,000 to the North Counties’ Family Support Center in Darrington, we will be presenting another $225,000 to the Arlington Family Resource Project, a new program of the Community Resources Foundation. $200,000 will be used to help with immediate recovery needs and $25,000 will be used to help the Arlington Family Resource Project with start up costs.

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

United Way plans to distribute up to $525,000 this week to families and communities affected by Oso landslide: $1.32 Million already collected for Disaster Recovery Fund

We are distributing up to $525,000 this week to support the families and community service organizations affected by the disaster. This is just a part of the $1.32 million that has come into the Recovery Fund so far.

Specifically, $400,000 will go directly to families for immediate recovery needs such as temporary housing, child care, food, gas cards, commuting costs and support for local volunteer responders. We are working through the local family support centers in these communities to get these funds into the hands of the affected families.

$200,000 will be handled by North Counties’ Family Services (formerly the Darrington Family Support Center) for approximately 200 families from Darrington whose lives have been severely disrupted by the mudslide. The remaining $200,000 will go to an Arlington-based family support center, which will be housed at the Arlington Food Bank for the approximately 40 Oso families who have lost their loved ones and their homes.

Up to $125,000 will go to directly support the community groups who are being called on to do so much during this difficult time. Of this $125,000, $25,000 will support North Counties’ Family Services so they can expand the work they are doing. $100,000* will support a new family support center in Arlington.

On Monday, we gave $3,000 to Green Cross, a community service organization, to support their disaster mental health work, and $3,000 to Catholic Community Services to provide gas cards to the community.

We will keep updating this blog and our website with information on where the money is coming from and where the money is going.

*Editor's Note: $25,000 is the initial amount needed by the Arlington Family Resource Project to cover start-up costs. United Way of Snohomish County will be ready to support them with an additional $75,000 if and when necessary.


Read more.

Monday, March 31, 2014

First Checks Go out the Door to Help People

United Way gave $3,000 to Green Cross to support their work.It's just a start, but checks for $3,000 each are going out today to help people affected by the landslide in Oso, Washington.

Trauma specialists from Green Cross are doing great work helping people process what happened.

We're also working with Snohomish County and Catholic Community Community Services to get gas cards to people who need them through the Joint Resource Centers set up by the county in Arlington and Darrington.


United Way launches text to give option; users choose the amount they wish to donate

Text OSO to 37284 to donate any amount to United Way of Snohomish County.

Message and data rates may apply. Text STOP to 37284 to STOP. Text HELP to 37284 for HELP.
Full Terms: singlepoint.com/oso