Connect People to the Help They Need
If your organization works with adults who need help with housing, food, utilities, mental health, transportation, or any other part of life that gets in the way, we can be your referral partner.
The Information Center has been the call for community resource navigation in Wayne and Monroe Counties for decades.
How to Refer Someone
Three ways to refer
• Warm hand-off. Sit with the person and call 734-282-7171 together. Make the introduction. The Community Navigator takes it from there. Highest success rate.
• Direct referral. Submit a referral online at or call us. Share the person’s contact info (with their permission) and we will reach out.
• Share the number. Give the person the TIC phone number and the URL of the Community Navigation main page. They call when they are ready.
Why Partners Work With TIC
One referral covers many needs. Your team does not have to track down housing, food, utilities, and mental health resources separately. We coordinate the connection.
Real local knowledge. Our resource database is curated for Wayne and Monroe Counties and updated continuously. We know which agencies are accepting new clients today.
Cross-program routing. If someone needs MI Choice, CTS, MI Options, SAP, or Michigan WORKS!, we route them. Your referral is not duplicated.
Trained, judgment-free intake. Community Navigators meet the person where they are. People you refer get the same calm, clear conversation every time.
Decades in the community. TIC has served Wayne County for decades and is a trusted name in the Downriver area.
Free for the person and free for your organization. No cost to the person you refer. No cost to your team.
A Quick Recap of Community Navigation
Community Navigation is The Information Center’s general front door for adults who need help finding the right local resource for their situation.
A Community Navigator listens, identifies what kind of help fits, and connects the person to specific local agencies with names, numbers, eligibility info, and next steps.
Community Navigation covers housing, utilities, food, mental health, employment, family stress, transportation, benefits enrollment, and more.
If the person turns out to be a fit for another TIC program (MI Choice, CTS, Michigan WORKS!, MI Options, SAP), we route them. The referral is not lost.
Free to the person being helped. Free to the referring partner.
For the People Connecting Someone Else to Help
Becoming a Community Partner
If your organization is ready for something more than referrals, we'd love to talk. Partner organizations get a real working relationship with The Information Center, not a logo on a website.
A TIC point of contact for ongoing coordination.
Program briefings and joint trainings on request.
Mission-aligned partnerships can include shared outreach and co-branded community events.
We call this work Mending the Safety Net. It only works when the people stitching it together, community organizations, nonprofits, faith communities, schools, and neighbors, are stitched in together too.
Make the Connection
When you refer someone to TIC, you don’t just hand off a name. You connect a real person to a real plan, with a Community Navigator who knows the local landscape.
Your team stays focused on what you do best. We handle the rest
Refer Someone
Is there someone you know who could use our services? Refer Here!
Call Us
Call us today. There is no obligation.
Partner with The Information Center
Together, we can do more. Partner with The Information Center and help your community find the support they need. Reach out today.
Common Questions for Community Partners
A warm hand-off, sit with the person and call 734-282-7171 together, has the highest success rate. If that is not possible, submit an online referral or share the TIC number with the person directly.
If you are sharing identifiable information with us (name, contact info), yes.
If you are simply giving the person the TIC phone number to call themselves, no permission is needed.
If the person is a strong fit for MI Choice, CTS, MI Options, SAP, or Michigan WORKS!, we route them to the right TIC program.
If TIC is not the right fit at all, we connect them to another community resource.
Yes, various materials are available. Use the contact form or call us to request them.
No. Community Navigation is free for the person being helped and free for the referring partner.
Refer them anyway. We will help connect them to a community navigation agency in their region.
Yes. The TIC phone line is open to anyone who needs help. There is no limit on how many times someone can call.