TUCSON, ARIZ.(KGUN) — Its the season of giving and the United Way and Southern Arizonans are doing their part to help families get through the strain of the pandemic. It's a continuing consequence of the pandemic, families looking for help to get back on their feet. CEO and President of United Way of Tucson Tony Penn says the organization has raised and dedicated more than 1.4 million dollars over the past year for COVID-19 relief for local families in need. Over 80,000 families have benefited from the funding.
"At this point even though we are shifting from the response phase to past the recovery phase now to the rebuild phase. We are still seeing rising eviction rates housing shortages and food insecurities. Many people have found themselves in a circumstance of need to no fault of their own and it can happen to any of us at any time,” Penn said.
There's also another big issue that's affecting families across Southern Arizona and how they function in their daily lives.
"High quality child care and child care in general because the child care sector has been devastated because of the pandemic,” Penn said.
The United Way joined forces with Interfaith Community Services, Our Family Services, Family Housing Resources and the Primavera Foundation to identify issues and support the community in times of need.
"We are supporting social service agencies who are great partners of United Way,” Penn said
As the holiday season gets underway Penn says it's always good to help those who just need a little boost to get their lives back during these tough times.
“Many of us who are blessed should count our blessings by making investments to make sure that those who are in need get a blessing,” Penn said.
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