NORWALK –The City of Norwalk’s Community Resource Hub (CRH) program was selected by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) as the winner of its annual Municipal Excellence Award, Mayor Harry Rilling announced Thursday, Dec. 5.
The city was honored within CCM’s Population 3 General Awards category. The mayor and AnaVivian Estrella, the director of the city’s Human Services Department, accepted the award at the 2024 CCM Convention earlier this week.
“Oftentimes, residents are unfamiliar with how to navigate systems to get the resources they need and come directly to City Hall to seek help,” Rilling said. “I’m proud that the Community Resource Hub is being recognized for helping thousands of residents in Norwalk.
“Whether it’s connecting people with access to a food pantry, clothing, employment resources, or health-related support, I want to remind anyone who may be struggling, that the City of Norwalk is here to help and to utilize our Community Resource Hub.”
Norwalk’s CRH was created in 2022 following the launch of the City’s Family Navigation Program in 2020, which was formed at the onset of the pandemic to identify new needs among struggling children and families. The CRH, housed in the City’s Community Services Department, connects residents directly with community providers to help meet their needs. Some support services include accessing a food pantry, clothing, employment resources and health-related support, including mental health resources.
“The Community Resource Hub demonstrates our commitment to meeting residents where they are and connecting them to the resources they need,” said Lamond Daniels, chief of Community Services for the City of Norwalk. “This award reflects the hard work of our team and partners in providing critical support to Norwalk residents.”
As a result of lessons learned from the first year of the Family Navigator Program in 2020, the city expanded the Family Navigator program’s mission so that all Norwalk residents, regardless of family structure, could benefit from access to the same level of support.
From July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, the CRH served 1,206 households comprised of 2,734 individuals. During this time, the highest unmet needs at intake by the number of households continued to be food, followed by housing and employment support.
During the CRH’s first year, July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023, the city served 792 households, an extraordinary 903% increase from the previous year’s 79 households when the program was managed by the Family Navigator Program. These households included 2,118 Norwalk residents, consisting of 1,280 adults and 838 children under 18.
This significant expansion was made possible through a public-private partnership, supported by generous grants from the Per and Astrid Heidenreich Family Foundation and the Ritter Family Foundation.
