Community Investment Profiles
Help Hotline CRISIS CENTER
Technology opens new doors for Help Hotline
Technology plays a large role in the success of the Help Hotline Crisis Center.
Duane Piccirilli, CEO of Help Hotline, discussed the challenges to the organization due to ever-changing technological developments and the limited ability of nonprofits to respond.
With a grant from The Raymond John Wean Foundation in June 2008, Help Hotline was able to update its technology as well as link all computers. Piccirilli said the grant has helped immensely.
“It was a big obstacle for us because none of our computers worked together,” he said.
Help Hotline is a part of a national lifeline and handles backup phone calls for the region. Help Hotline was established in 1971 and since then has grown to more than 50 employees and 34 volunteers to handle over 100,000 calls a year. “We’re the safety net for the community,” he said. Help Hotline provides 24-hour back-up service for state and local agencies.
“We are able to do that with advanced technology,” Piccirilli said.
Advanced technology not only helps Help Hotline perform better, it reduces the organization’s costs. Computers are able to handle more calls and with the development of a Web site, some of the traffic can be driven there.
Help Hotline’s involvement with The Wean Foundation began with attendance at Foundation workshops. There, Piccirilli learned of the Foundation’s capacity building grants and the focus resonated with him. “Things just fell into place,” Piccirilli said.
Piccirilli has plans for the future of Help Hotline, the first of which is to develop a new Web site. “We want it to be a point of contact for the entire community,” he said.
With Wean Foundation funding, Help Hotline is also developing a more sophisticated business model to be more competitive in a time of shrinking state and federal dollars.
For his long-term goals, Piccirilli would like to secure more contracts in fundraising. Help Hotline is funded by the Mahoning County Mental Health Board, grants and government contracts. “I’d like to develop more private contracts to reduce our dependency on public dollars.”
For now, Piccirilli sees the most recent technology advancements as a stepping stone for Help Hotline to run more efficiently and better serve the community.