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COVID-19 Resources You Can Use

By March 19, 2020No Comments6 min read

St. Ann Center is committed to helping people of all ages and abilities during this time of global uncertainty and concern. Here is a list of local, national and international sites that offer excellent information about the COVID-19 virus and helpful resources to keep you and your family healthy during the outbreak. This list will be updated and expanded as needed.

Up-To-Date Information

CDC COVID-19 What You Need to Know: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s coronavirus page, offering information on how to protect yourself, what to do if you think you’re sick, latest updates, travel information,  and more.

CDC Frequently Asked Questions:  Get answers to COVID-19 questions and advice from the experts.

World Health Organization Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak: Here’s the latest from the WHO answering your questions and providing travel advice, situation reports, research and development and mythbusters.

Where to Find Help

211 Get Connected. Get Help: 211 is the most comprehensive source of locally curated social services information in the U.S.  If you need assistance finding food, paying housing bills, accessing free childcare, or other essential services, click this link to learn how to get help in your community. You can also call 1-866-211-9966 and provide your ZIP code to be given a list of local agencies you can support through United Way’s COVID-19 Community Economic Relief Fund. NOTE: Call volumes to 211 are high–please be patient and try to use the text or online options first.

Resources for Business Owners: Milwaukee Metropolitan Association of Commerce has a compilation of resources for business owners on responding to the pandemic, including a toolkit from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and links to information from the Medical College of Wisconsin.

How to Protect Your Household from COVID-19: Can’t find Clorox wipes? You can still disinfect commonly touched surfaces in your home. NBC News talks to experts about the products and techniques that will kill coronavirus.

Tips for Coping with Social Distancing, Quarantine & Isolation: This tip sheet from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration describes feelings and thoughts you may have during and after social distancing, quarantine and isolation and suggests ways to care for your behavioral health during these experiences and provides resources for more help.

Supporting Military, Veteran and Family Caregivers During a Pandemic: AARP offers strategies to help military and veteran caregivers tackle some of the most critical issues they’re facing as a result of COVID-19.

A Guide about Guarding Mental Health During a Pandemic. Rehab 4 Addiction created this resource to help increase awareness and understanding of all aspects of dealing with the stress of the current coronavirus pandemic, particularly for people who live with depression and may be struggling during mandated or self isolation.

Emergency Food Resources:

Hunger Task Force Emergency Food Supplies: Hunger Task Force provides a map of locations of public emergency food distributions in Milwaukee. This map will be updated daily at 5 p.m. Also, find information on the Hunger Task Force Stockbox Program, providing USDA commodity foods to seniors and the Mobile Market, which brings nutritious food to food desert neighborhoods.

Salvation Army Food Pantry: Here’s information on Salvation Army’s new food pantry (its fifth in Milwaukee County), for ZIP codes 53218, 53224 and 53225. It includes days and hours of operation, as well as info on how and where to donate. Find out more about what Salvation Army is doing here.

MPS Free Meals & Enrichment Material for Students: Milwaukee Public Schools will provide free meals and learning/enrichment materials in hard copy and online format. Find the location of distribution sites here.

Links to Local Information

Milwaukee County COVID-19 Updates & Resources:  Milwaukee County provides daily updates on the number of countywide cases of COVID-19, facts on testing and self-quarantine and closures or changes in operation of Milwaukee County departments and programs.

Wisconsin Department of Health Services: Wisconsin’s DHS provides updates on COVID-19 outbreak in Wisconsin, guidance for individuals, employers, schools, long-term care facilities, and information for health care providers and how to sign up for email updates from the Wisconsin Health Alert Network.

MPS COVID 19 Updates: Stay tuned to this link for the latest updates on COVID-19 from Milwaukee Public Schools.

COVID-19 What you need to know about bus/airport service, services for seniors and more: Check out this roundup from Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service including information on services for seniors, the Aging Resource Call Center, services for people with disabilities, energy assistance and the status of county bus and airport services and parks and recreation.

Early Voting & Absentee Ballot Information (Milwaukee Election Commission): Here’s what you can do to get ready for the general election.

Information/Resources for Parents & Families

Handy Intergenerational Family Fact Sheet on Dealing with Coronavirus: Generations United offers a COVID-19 fact sheet that will be of particular interest to grandfamilies–where grandparents are raising grandchildren–and other multi-generational households, on staying healthy, informed and connected during the pandemic.

Games and Apps Available Free: 7 Generation Games is making all of its games and apps available for free for everyone. Whether you’re worried about your kids falling behind as schools are closed or looking for a way to keep them busy during the next few weeks, here’s help. Games are geared for grades 3-8. Educators who want to set up a classroom/school account so that teachers can access student data reports, please email info@7generationgames.com

Virtual Field Trips to Take with Your Kids: Family bloggers share a collection of various virtual field trips to take with kids, from art museums to aquariums to zoos.

What to Tell Your Kids about COVID-19: The CDC offers guidance on talking with children about coronavirus.

School’s Out…Now What?: Tips for parents from The Washington Post on social distancing, playdates, scheduling and creating structure for your family and more.

National Public Radio: Coronavirus and Parenting: Great resources and creative ideas for parents who are working at home and caring for their children, including online and non-screen activities. Plus, answers on everything from how to talk about COVID-19 with young children to how to stop kids from touching their faces.

Covibook: Check out this free printable coloring book by Manuela Molina, designed to support and reassure children, under the age of 7, regarding COVID-19.

Grandma Book’s World: Hear children’s book author Raejean Kanter read from her series Grandma Book Travels in which she combines two of her passions: love of children and travel. A grandmother of six, she has traveled to over forty countries in the world. The mission of the series is to help young children learn about other cultures to foster a greater understanding of inclusion.

For Caregivers of Adults

Tips for Dementia Caregivers: Advice from the Alzheimer’s Association on caring for loved ones at home or in assisted living.

COVID-19 and Alzheimer’s/Dementia: Protecting a loved one with dementia from coronavirus–advice from Dementia Care Central, a resource center for dementia caregivers.

Virtual Alzheimer’s Support Groups: The Alzheimer’s Association offers a number of teleconferences, webinars and family support groups.

Advice for Concerned Caregivers: AARP offers practical tips for family caregivers—how to prepare and reduce a loved one’s exposure to the virus.

How You Can Help Others

Milwaukee Election Officials Recruiting Poll Workers: Half of Milwaukee poll workers are over 60 and may be at risk for COVID-19. The City of Milwaukee currently needs about 1,800 poll workers.

Lend a Hand During the Pandemic: Feeling helpless? Take a look at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s compilation of ways you can help others during the pandemic

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