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National 211 Day in Oxford County

Friday, 11 February 2022 10:13

"If you have a burning house you call 911, but if you have a burning question you call 211."

OXFORD COUNTY - It's February 11th, also known as National 211 Day.

211 is a free information and referrals service for human, health, social and government services. It's funded by United Way and it's supported by the provincial government, the federal government as well as the County of Oxford.

Kelly Gilson, the Executive Director for United Way Oxford, gives us an example of why someone might call 211 or visit the 211 website.

"You might have just found out that you have a parent that has been diagnosed with dementia and you don't know what to do next because you haven't had previous history with an organization. You can phone 211 and they would tell you where to go."

Gilson says calling 211 is a confidential process, but they do take note of the types of calls they receive.

"If they have 100 calls from Oxford County asking for something very specific and there is no service, that is the kind of information that can come back to our community and we can do something about that gap."

211 is a national service so you can also get information regarding services in other communities across Canada. 

The 211 service has been available in Oxford County for over a decade now. Gilson was there for the launch and she remembers something that one the guest speakers said that still sticks with her to this day.

"If you have a burning house you call 911, but if you have a burning question you call 211."

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