Covid-19 Resources
Get vaccinated, wear a mask, physically distance, keep yourself and others safe - and reach for help if needed

These are hard times.  People are experiencing everything from fear to boredom.  Many are worried about their financial future.  Children are at home and parents are trying to find ways to help them understand what is happening and keep them engaged   While there's much we must deal with, there are also an increasing number of helpful resources.  Hopefully some of these can help you and your family practice resilience, safety, and kindness. This is just a beginning.  Please feel free to share other ideas you have to EWCDems@gmail.com and we will add them to the list
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A recent useful list of resources from Family Forward:  ​https://familyforwardoregon.org/resources?fbclid=IwAR1CRo-Y-QDhnL0DuwICHWOMicCAzCcES2-g9MT0LAaURHIz08kgDjx1J6Y

Covid-19 updates

State of Oregon has an excellent site giving us updates on everything from number of cases to info flyers in many languages.

Washington County has resources and information on the current number of cases in our county.

There are many great lists of resources out there now.  Check at the bottom of this post for some of them.

Taking care of ourselves​

Behavioral Health

We are all experiencing stress from the current situation. If you wish help with stress, depression or other issues of addiction or mental health, Washington county now offers free counseling services. To request an appointment, call Washington County Behavioral Health at 503-846-4528 or email COVIDCounseling@co.washington.or.us. You can also reach 24/7 support at 503-291-9111. I am grateful for this service offered to Washington County residents. 

Another national resource.  If you or someone you know needs help, you can call Lines for Life at 800-273-8255, 24/7/365 or Text 273TALK to 839863 8am-11pm PST daily and talk to a counseling professional.  You can also call the Lines for Life Drug and Alcohol helpline at 800-923-4357 for a listing of online or in-person AA and NA meetings available.
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In response to social distancing orders, Oregon Recovers has pivoted from advocacy to focus on getting resources to people in recovery, especially in rural areas. This website serves as a statewide recovery network, providing Oregonians access to all forms of recovery available in their specific localities, including food and employment links.
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Here are some very useful resources for supporting individuals with autism during difficult times.  The full packet includes templates and other links to implement support. 

Seniors

Oregon Senior Peer Outreach, a program of Community Counseling Solutions, has launched “Senior Connection," a free program to keep Washington County older adults connected while they stay at home. Certified peer support specialists trained to work with older adults make friendly calls to listen and provide support weekly or more often upon request. Call 1-833-736-4676 to sign-up for this free program.

Suicide Prevention

If you are in crisis or just want someone to talk to, please know that you are not alone! Call the Washington County Crisis Line at 503-291-9111 or the National Suicide Hotline at 800-273-8255 (press 1 for veterans or service members).

Domestic Violence

Families and couples are challenged by spending much time together while being cut off from the usual supports.  Reach out if this is leading to concerns or dangers in your relationship.  Here is a link to services throughout Oregon. If you are in immediate danger call 911.

Child Protection

Many parents are finding it hard to manage the anxiety of this time plus having their children home all the time. Being a parent is a critically important job, 24 hours a day. It’s not always easy. If you are in crisis and need assistance, please call the National  Parent Helpline® to get emotional support from a trained Advocate and become empowered and a stronger parent.  1-855- 4A PARENT (1-855-427-2736)

Food Resources

The Oregon Food Bank website has information on many food resources.  These are open during the current Covid-19 era.  Search by zip code on their page.
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Tigard Tualatin Family Resource Center has a list of free food resources. 
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Handle stress through mindfulness

The Yale Stress Center and Kabat-Zinn provide other tips and techniques:

• Take a moment or two to pause during the day. Put aside whatever you are working on or thinking about, and take in a few slow breaths. Notice the sensations of the air going in through your nose and exhaling out through your nose.
• Lie down, close your eyes, and slowly scan your body mentally from head to toe—or start from the opposite direction—bringing your awareness to each part of the body without judging or trying to change anything. 
• Practice S.T.O.P.—this is an acronym that stands for Stop, Take a breath, Observe your feelings, and Proceed. 

For people who want further guidance on how to practice mindfulness, Yale offers some Mindfulness Based Stress  Reduction guided sessions online.

Children, families and learning

The Oregon Department of Education has an extensive list of ideas and resources to support our young people during this time.

Tigard Tualatin School District has a variety of resources information about how your child is learning online and how to support them.  and a day-to-day bingo card to guide learning.
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Tips for families including age-appropriate responses to common questions, a guide to self-care, and activities for young children experiencing social distancing.
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Another list of good children’s activities.

Using your time

Entertainment

Did you ever wish you were in New York to see something at Lincoln Center.  Now you can - they are running everything from ballet classes to opera to complex coloring books available to everyone.  Take a look.

Oregon Arts and Lectures has a great list of events around the nation that can be joined online.

Washington County Libraries has free links to everything from movies to Ancestry tracing to coding lessons available with your library card (which you can sign up for at this site.)

The Guardian has listed events, many of them free, that they choose for watching in the next few months v
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One of my favorites - The Metropolitan Opera is offering a different encore presentation from the company’s Live in HD series for free streaming on the Met website, with each performance available for a period of 23 hours, from 4:30 p.m. PDT until 3:30 p.m. the following day. A list of upcoming operas is on the website.
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 Play online games that teach you about birds courtesy of the Cornell Labs Bird Academy.

Learning

The Great Courses is offering a free one month trial to explore a vast number of topics.

Helping Others

Rose City Riveters has a great list of community organizations who are helping and who can use your support.  Many of these are small organizations working within their immediate community and employing community members.  
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 Packed with Pride is a joint effort of the Foundation for Tigard Tualatin Schools, the Tigard-Tualatin School Education Association, the Tigard-Tualatin Student Union, and TTSD School Board Members Maureen Wolf and Ben Bowman. The webpage gives you a chance to volunteer or donate funds or goods to serve families in the Tigard Tualatin School District who are in need.

Help local business

Consider using local restaurants for an occasional meal. Buy gift certificates from businesses to use later. We are going to want them there when we get through this. Click below for a partial list.
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Go to page: Local businesses for take out, delivery, and gift certificates
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Hear from our cities and others - great resources

Rep. Rachel Prusak has a comprehensive list of resources including for small businesses.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer has compiled a long list of resources in the Portland area.  

The city of Tigard has compiled a list of questions and resources.

Here are resources and answers from the city of Tualatin

Resources from King City.

A range of resources - scroll down for museum tours.