NORWICH – Advocates for Opportunities for Chenango, a local not for profit action agency committed to helping others help themselves, are calling on Chenango County residents to help update the organization’s community needs assessment for the first time in nearly five years.

Beginning this week, proponents of Opportunities for Chenango (OFC) will be out in full force to collect data and voluntary feedback from residents across the county during the initial phases of the months-long operation to ensure the agency is on track with its mission statement. In the process, OFC will be working in partnership with the Center fo Applied Community Research and Development (CARCD) at Binghamton University for professional oversight of the survey.

The goal of the 39 question survey, said OFC Executive Director Wayne Viera, is to better meet the needs of families and individuals, even while the face of poverty continues to evolve.

“The landscape of poverty in most communities has changed drastically since 2008, when the recession began,” said Viera. “Many people dropped into poverty then, or had a gradual decline into poverty over the years ... this survey helps us to guide the efforts of the agency in the fight against poverty.”