Douglas/Elbert Task Force
FACT SHEET
Douglas/Elbert Task Force
Office:
404A
Thrift Store:
Castle
303/688-1114 FAX
303/688-3163
Mission Statement:
The Douglas/Elbert Task
Force endeavors to meet the immediate needs of residents of
Douglas and
Brief History:
in 1984, local parishioners of several Castle Rock churches
joined forces to create a centralized location to send people in need.
The founders also wanted to encourage volunteerism by providing
opportunities for the members of their congregations to become directly
involved with the needs in their communities.
In the past 24 years, the Task Force has expanded services to
include all of Douglas and
In 2007, the Task Force provided $638,437 in client assistance.
·
The Task
Force’s goal is to meet the needs of financially distressed families and
people in crisis. We
address immediate needs by consistently providing counseling, food and
other necessities for homeless, low income and the working poor people
in our community.
·
We
concentrate on the causes of hunger by actively working on issues that
affect the newly unemployed, the unemployed and those on fixed incomes,
disabled and the elderly.
We meet these challenges with over 125 volunteers, one full-time and
seven part-time staff.
·
Each
client receives one-on-one counseling.
We provide quality screening, service delivery and meaningful
referrals for clients. Task
Force client walk-in client service hours are
·
This past
fiscal year (January – December 2007), we served 12,832 people
Over half the people who
receive our services are children.
·
Volunteers provided 16,333 hours of service in 2007, valued at $294,811,
the equivalent of 10 full-time staff.
The major services
the Task Force provides are:
Food and Toiletries:
approximately 85% of our clients receive these basic services.
We also provide diapers, formula, and special dietary items. In
2007, we distributed $352,125 in food, hygiene and household supplies.
Housing Assistance:
we assist clients who present eviction or foreclosure notices
with up to $250 in financial assistance in order to prevent
homelessness, and help
clients with security deposits to obtain new living arrangements.
We provided $59,632 in assistance in 2007 for 219 households.
Utility Assistance:
we provide utility assistance (heat, electric, water) to clients
with shut-off notices. We
provided $98,433 in 2007 for 495 households.
Emergency Overnight
Lodging: in conjunction
with the Police and Sheriff’s Departments, we provide vouchers for two
nights lodging for homeless or transient individuals and families.
We provided $23,493 in 2007, an increase of 17% over 2006.
Transportation Assistance:
we provide bus travel vouchers and gas vouchers to those with
verifiable job interviews or doctor appointments.
We provided $3,020 in gasoline assistance in 2007.
We provided $574 in bus tickets in 2007, relocating families
fleeing domestic violence, and providing one-way transportation for
homeless individuals to either
Prescription and Dental
Assistance: we provide
one-time prescription and dental assistance for verifiable emergency
situations.
Prescription/dental expenses totaled $2,961 in 2007.
Clothing, Household Items:
clients may “shop” for free in our Thrift Store for clothing and
shoes, household items and furniture.
We distributed approximately 15,096 items from the Thrift Store
in 2007 valued at $60,386, 29% more than 2006.
ID Documentation:
we assist clients in securing the documentation needed for
housing applications, school and social services including Colorado
State ID’s, birth certificates, police records, etc.
Information and Referral:
staff and volunteers make over 2,000 referrals annually
connecting clients to other agencies and resources to provide long-term
solutions to problems.
205 families were
“adopted” by 93 different community individuals and organizations for
the holidays in 2007, an increase of 20% over 2006. (Thirty-eight of
these families were provided gifts from our Holiday Room.)
Parents may also use this room year round if they cannot afford
birthday gifts for their children, or if their child needs a new gift to
attend another’s birthday party.
Make a donation or become a
volunteer! Please call the
Douglas/Elbert Task Force at 303/688-1114.
Assisting the Community with
Compassion