Coronavirus: Minimizing the Impact

March 11, 2020 - Albany,  NY --- The continued impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) within our region reminds us of our collective responsibility to our families, colleagues, neighbors and all community members. As an organization dedicated to the health and well-being of our community, we are closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation and taking steps to minimize the impact of an outbreak.

Be Informed

You can call United Way’s 2-1-1 helpline 24/7 with questions or concerns about COVID-19.  This service is free and available in over 200 languages. 

We encourage everyone to read the recommendations from the New York State Department of Health and the Center for Disease Control for reducing the risk of COVID-19 infection for yourselves and others. 

Additionally, most counties in our service area have information posted on their website and are providing updates as necessary.  For information specific to your county, please utilize the relevant link below:  

Albany County

Columbia County

Greene County

Rensselaer County

Saratoga County

Schenectady County 

Schoharie County

Leading by Example

Our top priority is the safety of our staff, volunteers and partners.  This week we have taken the following precautionary steps: 

Created a contingency plan for business continuity that includes remote work alternatives

Canceled our upcoming Journey to Career Symposium, which was scheduled for March 18

Continued to assess our current programs such as the Cash Coalition’s Free Tax Prep, and encouraged people to utilize myfreetaxes.com when possible

Planning Ahead

We are also working on contingency plans with other agencies and our partners to prepare for the implications of COVID-19 and the necessary course of action. 

Those preparations include organizing our community to bring support those who may be directly or indirectly affected by an outbreak:

Low-income families with children who go to schools that have been closed and have nowhere else to get their meals

People whose hours are cut due to temporary closures and who will need assistance to stay in their homes

People who are experiencing homelessness and who do not have the resources they need to stay safe

United We Win

Our community is stronger when we LIVE UNITED, and together we can support each other through the challenges and implications of a COVID-19 outbreak.  

Learn more about United Way's response to Coronavirus at www.unitedwaygcr.org/covid-19