The phone lines will continue ringing as the 211 helpline for Sarasota County gets a lifeline of its own. County commissioners cut the $109,000 annual funding to United Way of Suncoast which runs the program. Before the April 1 deadline, a private citizen stepped up to cover the funding for two years to give the program a new lease for the future. "To basically say 'No, we're not going to get the money after accounting has done it for 25 years' it's just plain selfish," Hugh Culverhouse Jr., a Sarasota philanthropist, said. Culverhouse who is a Sarasota attorney and developer expressed strong passion as he spoke about the situation. His offer to pay for the 211 program came after Sarasota County commissioners doubled down on their 4 to 1 vote not to continue funding the 24-hour helpline. "211 is vital to the county because so many people, whether caused by old age or mental problems, have simple questions that they need the 211 to help them," Culverhouse explained. "It's that bridge for resources. We need that," Ciller Gibson said. Gibson who just recently moved out of Sarasota to Tampa said the 211 helpline saved her when she found herself facing hard times with her children right after a divorce.