Greetings YWCA NWLA Community,

The YWCA of Northwest Louisiana is taking the health and well-being of our participants, staff, volunteers, and community very seriously with the arrival of the COVID-19 virus. In adherence to Governor John Bel Edwards, Stay-At-Home Order effective March 23, at 5:00 PM, all offices of the YWCA of Northwest Louisiana will be closed through April 12th, at which time we will reevaluate the options for reopening for our community.  All YWCA events planned for March have been canceled.


Please understand that our staff is continuing to work from home to meet the needs of our community to the best of our ability.  We are implementing webinars and a telehealth program to ensure existing clients continue to be served.  We will do our best to respond to your questions in a timely manner.


We recognize that there is no easy solution, please know that we are working to make the best decisions with the information we have available to us for our participants, community, staff and for our YWCA. Through discussions with our Board of Directors and leadership staff, we are doing everything possible to help “flatten the curve.”


Here are some tips what we all can do:

·         Follow the Stay-At-Home Order
·         Clean Your Hands Often (for at least 20 secs)
·         Don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth
·         Cover coughs or sneezes with a tissue (throw tissue away)
·         Practice Social Distancing (at least 6 ft. apart)


In the meantime, here are some local, state, and national resources to stay well-informed on the developments of the COVID-19 virus:

·         Call 211:  Anyone looking for information about the COVID-19 outbreak can simply dial 211 or text the keyword LACOVID to 898-211 for the most current information about the outbreak as it becomes available.

LOCAL
·         City of Shreveport: www.shreveportla.gov
·         City of Bossier City: www.bossiercity.org

STATE
·         Louisiana Department of Health: http://www.ldh.la.gov/
·         Louisiana Office of the Governor: https://gov.louisiana.gov/
·         Applying for unemployment: http://www.louisianaworks.net/hire , 1-866-783-5567
·         COVID-19 Phone Line: 1-866-310-7977 (trained counselors for stress & anxiety)

NATIONAL
·         Centers for Disease Control: https://www.cdc.gov/

We are grateful for your patience and understanding as we maneuver through these challenging times. Please take care of yourself and your family, and we look forward to seeing you soon.

As always, thank you for your commitment to eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.


Be encouraged as we will get through this together,

Belinda Roberson, Ph.D., M.B.A.

YWCA NWLA Executive Director