Take 5

Take 5 minutes to tell 5 people how supporting United Way of Hall County will improve all of our lives.

These stats are here to educate you about the current needs and what loyal supporters like you do to impact the lives in Hall County.

STAT #1
One of The Salvation Army goals is to assist people in meeting basic needs including food, clothing, and shelter, and providing support for individuals or families in crisis.

During the current financial crisis, we have seen the unemployment rate in Hall County go from 3.5% in November of 2007 to 9.1% in September of 2009.

The Self-Sufficiency standard measures what it costs to meet one’s most basic needs, without public or private subsidies. In Hall County, the self-sufficiency wage for a single parent family with 1 preschooler and 1 school age child is currently $20.56 an hour. As of July 2009, Georgia’s minimum wage is $7.25 an hour.

Nationally, thrift shop sales are up 47%; locally, The Salvation Army thrift shop sales are down but vouchers for free clothing are up by 10%. Through September of this year, the Salvation Army in Hall County has temporarily housed 2549 people – an increase of 3%. The Georgia Coalition to Prevent Homelessness reports that over 75,000 people were homeless at some point during 2008 and that these numbers are expected to increase by 20% in 2009. Over 60% of reported homeless households include children, the majority of which are homeless for the first time in their lives.

STAT #2
The birth rate for Hall County among girls ages 15-19 is 85 per 1000 females. Teen mothers are less likely to complete high school. Only 1/3 receive a high school diploma. The poverty rate for children born to teen mothers who have never married and who have not graduated high school is 78%.

At Teen Pregnancy Prevention – 88% of the teen mothers that complete the Teen Mother program – ultimately graduate from high school.

STAT #3
Literate is an individual’s ability to read, write, and speak English, and to compute, and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job and in society.

Without those skills, a person with less than a high school degree earns $479 for a 40-hour work week, a high school graduate earns $660 a week, a person with some college earns $767 weekly, then those with an associate’s degree $812 a week and those with a 4 year degree earn on average $1243 a week. Over a lifetime, if you’re illiterate, you earn $260,000 less than even those with a high school degree. In fact, your health care costs are 4 times higher than those with higher literary skills.

At Alliance for Literacy we strive to increase the literacy rates in our community. We are committed to breaking the cycle of illiteracy. We typically serve over 2,000 students a year and over 200 GED’s are attained.

STAT #4
The hours between 3 and 6 pm are the most dangerous times for at risk behavior for teens. So, where do teens hang out after school?

One example of an after school program is the Boys and Girls Clubs of Hall County’s teen center, where they serve 300 students Monday through Friday. Since the Teen Center opened in 2006 –
100% of members regularly attending the Teen Center GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL;
100% of members regularly attending the Teen Center ENROLLED IN POST-SECONDARY SCHOOLS;
100% OF 8TH grade students regularly attending the Teen Center PASSED THE CRCT TEST

STAT #5
1 out of 5 people in Hall County DO NOT have health insurance. There are an estimated 37,000 individuals without health insurance in Hall County. Consider that a sore throat treated in the emergency room costs approximately $300. The cost at Good News Clinics is $45. If those 37,000 uninsured people came to Good News Clinics instead of the ER, there would be a savings of $9.4 million – just for a sore throat.

At Good News Clinics, the increase in doctor visits is up 14% from last year. Each MONTH, there are 825 doctor visits and 700 dental visits.

STAT #6
Over 1000 inquiries to the Hall County 2-1-1 call center have asked for help this year for utilities alone.