NE Indiana Study Provides Snapshot of Community Needs

CANI became Brightpoint in May 2015.

A regional Community Needs Assessment released by Fort Wayne-based Brightpoint suggests poverty is continuing to rise in the nonprofit’s service area. The organization, which is formerly known as Community Action of Northeast Indiana, says more than one-third of all households in the 12-county region struggle to meet basic living costs.

The organization says the poverty rate has climbed over the last five years, coming in at nearly 2013, which were the most recent numbers used. Brightpoint also says over 22 percent of youth in its service area are impoverished.

Brightpoint says the Community Needs Assessment aims to provide a snapshot of the major causes of poverty in the area in to "better understand the community we serve and to improve how we serve." It includes demographics and trends for unemployment, population, ethnicity, and health figures.