United Way Grants $30,000 for Housing Support in Wood County

The United Way of Greater Toledo is giving $30,000.00 in grant money to three Wood County agencies for housing support. The three Wood County agencies to receive funds are The Cocoon at $10,000.00 for expanded shelter support and hotel placement; the Great Lakes Community Action Partnership at $15,000.00 for rent/mortgage assistance; and Wood County Area Ministries at $5,000.00 for rent/mortgage assistance.

“Because we don’t have a homelessness shelter here in Wood County we allocated the dollars to those kinds of programs that are going to help people stay housed,” says United Way Wood County Area Director Erin Hachtel. “So those places that help with rent, help with a mortgage payment, also we provided some additional support for our domestic violence shelter, The Cocoon.”

Find out if you qualify for these programs here.

These funds are more than necessary in Wood County. According to statistics via the Wood County Continuum of Care Coalition, in 2020, 1,523 Wood County, Ohio individuals engaged in homelessness prevention services. In 2021, more than 2,112 individuals reached out for help with rent, mortgage, shelter, hotel stays, or other information about available services, an “alarming increase in need,” the news release from the United Way of Greater Toledo said.

“This new, $30,000.00 investment in Wood County is yet another pull from our Emergency Response Fund — something we established at the start of the (coronavirus) pandemic. Our communities, in big cities and small towns, are deeply financially hurting from the economic implications of this virus and we need quick, data-informed actions to best serve residents.”

For more information on how you can get a grant and learn about refinance programs, access our database & search engine here.

“It is important for our community to understand that Wood County has no homeless shelter and just one domestic violence and sexual violence shelter,” said Erin Hachtel, area director for the United Way in Wood County. “As a community, we must do everything we can to keep residents housed and bolster support services for those displaced by domestic violence.”