Question: How has the decrese in United Way funding affected Triangle Family Services?

Answer: Over the past two years, Triangle Family Services has lost approximately $350,000 in annual funding from United Way. In response, we have had to reduce staff, eliminate services - including traveler's aid, raise our minimum fees for clients, and increase appeals for grants and donations. Our biggest concern is that without additional support, many families in our community simply cannot afford the minimum cost for services. Donations are needed to help supplement these costs to ensure that our services are affordable and accessible to our most vulnerable families.

Question: To whom does Triangle Family Services provide services?

Answer: Most of the families seeking help at TFS are employed and holding down two or more jobs just to make ends meet. Over 80% of the people we serve in the Triangle live below the poverty level.

Question: How has Triangle Family Services' Mental Health Program helped the community?

Answer: Last year, Triangle Family Services helped more than 900 low-income families, children, and individuals receive mental health counseling, psychiatric services and psychological testing by licensed and professional clinicians. Over 75% of families receiving counseling showed significant improvement dealing with every day family situations.

Question: How has Triangle Family Services helped those who have been convicted of domestic violence?

Answer: Last year, more than 1,200 individuals convicted of a domestic violence offense participated in a year-long counseling program to learn appropriate ways to deal with their emotions. Of those who successfully complete the DOSE (Domestic Offenders Sentenced to Education) program, over 95% do not return to court in Wake County for a subsequent domestic violence offense.

Question: How has Triangle Family Services helped working families avoid losing their homes?

Answer: Triangle Family Services provides two essential services to help families avoid homelessness. First, up to $1,500 in direct financial assistance is provided to help pay for rent, food, utilities, and other essential expenses to ensure the family is not evicted from their home. In addition, case managers provide home-based support that helps families learn how to budget, save money, increase their employment and income potential and connect with other community resources. To qualify for these services, each family must have sufficient income to pay for basic expenses (once their financial crisis has been resolved), and have at least one child under the age of 18 living in the home. Over thirty families, including 75 children, in Wake County, avoided eviction from their homes last year after receiving help from Triangle Family Services.

Question: What consumer credit and budget counseling does Triangle Family Services provide?

Answer: According to the News & Observer, 28.8% of Wake County families do not make enough income to meet basic living expenses. Triangle Family Services helps families develop the skills they need to gain control of their home finances, avoid filing for bankruptcy and possibly lose their home, and regain and maintain financial independence. We also provide financial education seminars on topics such as first-time homebuyers education, avoiding scams such as payday loans, identity theft, using credit wisely, and many others. In addition, TFS helps to pay back over $4 million in consumer debt to creditors each year.

Question: What is supervised visitation?

Answer: Supervised visitation programs have been established throughout the United States to help children victims of, or witness to, chronic domestic violence. Such centers provide a safe and neutral place for children to visit with a non-custodial parent during monitored exchanges or during court-ordered supervised visitations. First initiated by Safechild, Iinteract, and Wake County District Court, 12 organizations were drawn together to plan and establish a supervised visitation program for children in Wake County. In January 2001, Triangle Family Services was chosen as the lead agency to implement this program, and Time Together was finally opened in November 2002.

Question: What are Triangle Family Services' priorities for the future?

Answer: Triangle Family Services’ priorities include:

• Preventing homelessness
• Keeping children safe
• Reducing violence in the Hispanic Latino community
• Providing geriatric mental health services for seniors and their caregivers
• Offering sliding fees and scholarships for low-income families
• Creating additional volunteer and staff training opportunities
• Community research and planning

Question: What are the funding sources of Triangle Family Services?

Answer: