Representatives of United Way met with members of Carbon County last week to discuss the needs of the community, and how to build the foundation to address important issues.

The meeting, led by Marc Rittle, senior director of community impact for the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, brought together over two dozen representatives from Carbon County's medical, educational and community service organizations."We're excited on a few different fronts," Rittle said. "We think that this could mean a lot for investing in Carbon County, for learning about Carbon County, and ultimately for raising more dollars that can go to residents in need."The needs assessment at the Carbon Chamber and Economic Development Corporation was the first step in the process, with community representatives narrowing down the specific problems of Carbon County.Rittle kicked off the meeting by mapping the needs assessment and investment process, detailing how United Way would help direct the efforts of the community to address area-specific needs and special projects."I actually want to hear about your work, what you do, and the residents that you're working with," Rittle said, focusing on addressing the gaps in the system that could be bridged by United Way.Food and shelterHomelessness, transportation, career opportunities, medical care, and senior care were highlighted by every group, with multiple participants weighing in on the necessity for funding and volunteers."There are only two shelters in the area. One is Family Promise, and that's for families, the other is Peaceful Knights, and that's for men. So, there's a huge population that is underserved. The two shelters are very limited in their capacity, so there's usually a waiting list and people who can't get in," Natalie Bojko of Family Promise said.Bojko also pointed out that the area is in need of warming centers, and more shelters that accept drop-ins.Bill Gallagher, representing the area's Meals on Wheels branch, expressed concern for a viable workforce."Our biggest gap with Meals on Wheels is volunteers, delivery people," Gallagher said. "We're all retired, some people are getting older and have to drop out of the game. We have snowbirds, we have people whose cars don't work all the time, so we're on a short leash sometimes."Other representatives expressed similar concerns, pointing out that while many people are required to participate in community service efforts after being released from the criminal justice system, they cannot participate in the programs due to background checks.Getting aroundRittle was surprised to learn about the trouble with transportation in Carbon, a community that is built upon towns separated by miles of fields, farms and mountain ranges."If you don't have a car in Carbon County, you're in trouble," Amanda Kroenig, a member of the Domestic Violence Service Center, said.Limited to a single taxi and one Uber driver, in addition to restrictions on buses, getting around from town to town was painted as a nightmare for many residents. Getting to doctor's appointments and work are especially problematic.The presence of local medical care, especially in the realms of primary care physicians, dentists, and mental health practitioners, was a hot topic with each group as well.Health care"As a parent in this county, I had to travel between Carbon County, Schuylkill County and Monroe County to get to my doctors," Lisa Johnson of Blue Mountain Health System said.While there are programs that could potentially attract more physicians to the area, Carbon County often enough does not qualify."We've tried to get a health professions shortage designation in the area any number of times, and the problem is that if it seems like we're close enough to an area where there are a lot of primary care doctors, you don't get that designation," said Shelba Scheffner, executive director of the Area Health Education Center.The access to affordable health care, and in some cases, getting those who are qualified for medical programs to accept the help, is another common issue."What the providers are saying more and more is that they are finding that their patients are coming in sicker, because their deductibles are going up, their copays are going up, and so they are putting off care," Scheffner said. "They come in at a more acute level, they can't afford their medications. Now, you're always going to have this, but it seems to be worse in the last couple of years. Often what will happen is, people will use the emergency room as their primary care provider, or the urgent cares, rather than go to their primary care provider."Funding the problemsOf course, in order to bridge the gaps and fill the needs of the community, funding is a necessity. Cori Rolon, senior director of workplace campaigns for United Way, addressed the issue of finances, and how United Way could help the community improve."We talked about what I see as a lot of problems, but what I want you all to think about are the dreams. So, what could Carbon County look like 10 years from now? It could be dramatically different with a lot of these problems solved. That really requires funding from United Way," Rolon said.Rolon touched on reaching out to local businesses for support, and how United Way could help run internal campaigns for those businesses, with no administration charges. That way, all the money could be funneled back into local programs."Carbon County itself, within the county, raised $33,000 last year," Rolon said. "Based on our analysis, our rate of people who usually donate based on the census, we believe that we could raise $2 million in this county. If you could just imagine what $2 million could do, that means no more $500 grants, or $1,000 grants. It means $20,000 grants, $100,000 grants. What a big difference that could make for a community."At the end of the meeting, Rittle commented that he was overwhelmed with the number of attendees, and the wealth of information. Rittle and United Way will continue to educate themselves on the needs of the area by evaluating county data, such as census information, and meeting directly with organizations and residents. Once that data is compiled, it will be presented at a group meeting sometime around February, with a public comment and feedback opportunity. From there, United Way and the numerous organizations in Carbon County can begin applying funding and other assistance to fill the gaps in programs, and address other needs for the area."I think this is a great first step," Rittle said. "I think it's important for United Way to connect with the community, and it's important for the health and human service members to be connecting with each other. We can help the community to work together, to have a better, stronger Carbon County. That's our goal."