|
For
a Woman Who Has Trouble Getting Around, Help Getting By
Chaya Tolwinski,
a
Met Council client, is profiled for the
New
York Times Neediest Cases.
Joyce
Traina, Met Council's Director of Home Care, talks about seniors and
assisted living on Smart Money TV: Assisted
Living Facilities
Sandra Greenstein, Met Council's Director of Career Services, is
interviewed by the New York Times about the Medical Pathways program:
A Helping Hand for Technical Training
Bay
Currents ran a feature story about Jewish Poverty with statistics and
information from Willie Rapfogel:
Yes, there is Jewish Poverty in Brooklyn
and click on "Current Issue."
Met Council Volunteers Build Library for Formerly Homeless Mothers and
Children
on
MLK Day
Volunteers
stamping and cataloging donated books as part of an MLK Day Project to
create a library for Hillside House in Queens, a shelter for single
mothers and children.
In
the spirit of Martin Luther King's commitment to education and
literacy, 60 volunteers from Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty
spent Martin Luther King Day hammering shelves and cataloging books to
create a children's library for formerly homeless mothers and children
in Queens.
The
library will be the first for Hillside House, a transitional shelter
for homeless mothers and children located in Queens, and funded by the
Department of Homeless Services. Renovated in 1995 as part of
Metropolitan Council's affordable and charitable housing projects, the
shelter serves an ethnically diverse population of 60 mothers and
their young children, many of whom have been victims of domestic
violence and abuse.
Jess Wisloski covered the event for the
New York Daily News. To read the article,
click here.
334 East 92nd
Street, Constructed by the Arker Companies, is a 23 unit senior
residence near First Avenue. Completed construction of the building
is expected by February 2007. Applications are currently being
accepted
See the Informational
Flyer
Applications
may be sent to: Housing Program, Metropolitan Council on Jewish
Poverty, 80 Maiden Lane, 21st Floor, NY, NY 10038
Newly Constructed Senior Citizen Apartments for Rent:
Applications are
still
being accepted for 119 affordable housing rental apartments at
West
End Avenue and W. 61st Street
in the Lincoln Center section of Manhattan
See the Informational
Flyer
-ALSO-
Met Council is pleased to
announce that applications are still being accepted for 12 affordable
housing rental apartments under construction at 231 East 77th
Street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
See the Informational
Flyer
Applications
may be sent to: Housing Program, Metropolitan Council on Jewish
Poverty, 80 Maiden Lane, 21st Floor, NY, NY 10038
Met Council Would Like to Say Thanks!
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty
would like to thank Robot Village, located at 252 W. 81st
Street in Manhattan, for their generous donation of toys to be given
to some disadvantaged children of New York City. The products they
donated included three 4004 guide robots, two Robomechs, three
InfoFax Robots, and one Machine Man. For more information or to view
more products, you can visit
www.robotvillage.com or call 212-799-ROBO.
CONSUMER AFFAIRS
COMMISSIONER JONATHAN MINTZ COMMENDS
CITY BUSINESSES THAT
KEEP FAIR PRICES DURING PASSOVER
DCA
Encourages New Yorkers to Call 311 to Report Unusual Price Spikes
During Holiday
New York City Department of Consumer
Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Jonathan Mintz, joined by elected
officials, business and community leaders, today kicked off the
beginning of Passover preparations by commending City businesses that
keep prices fair. Commissioner Mintz also reminded New Yorkers that
they can call 311, the City’s 24-hour Citizen Service Hotline, or file
a complaint on the DCA website at
www.nyc.gov/consumers
to report unusual price spikes on Kosher-for-Passover items
through April 20. The DCA will follow up by doing a complete
inspection of the store including checking scales for accuracy, proper
pricing, and more.
“New York City kosher retailers are the
best place to shop for your family’s Seder. I commend the businesses
that keep prices fair during Passover, and based on the few complaints
we receive, most businesses do the right thing,” said Commissioner
Mintz. “Consumers who notice any unusual price spikes on
Kosher-for-Passover items should call 311 or go to our website. The
DCA is prepared to conduct soup-to-nuts inspections of any stores
taking advantage of the holiday.”
“Passover
is one holiday that most middle income families find costly and hard
to afford. The Jewish poor and near-poor have a much more difficult
time choosing between their dignified religious observance of the
holiday and other necessities. Mayor Bloomberg’s and his Department
of Consumer Affairs’ vigilance during this time is deeply
appreciated,” said Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty Executive
Director / CEO William E. Rapfogel.
“Thanks
to the efforts of the Department for Consumer Affairs, things have
gotten a lot better. It's not necessary to get ripped off when buying
items for Passover. You have many choices and my best advice is to
shop around,” said Councilmember Simcha Felder.
“Prices need to
be closely monitored during the Passover holiday to make sure that
Kosher consumers are being treated fairly and that there is no
unjustified price gauging by store owners," said Council Member David
I. Weprin, Chair of the Council Finance Committee. "There is no excuse
for blatant discrimination against Kosher consumers.”
$4 Million Dollar H.E.A.T.
Rebate Program Complete!
At the start of Spring, New York
City Council appropriated $4 million dollars to implement an
energy supplement program for eligible NYC senior citizens in
meeting the rising costs of heating their homes.
This heating
supplement was designated for seniors (at least 60 years old)
who live in New York City, pay for their heat, and meet the
income guidelines as outlined by the City.
With the assistance of the New
York City Department for the Aging, the City Council named the
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty as the program
administrator responsible for outreach and issuing individual
heating supplement payments authorized for Fiscal Year 2006. It
was a busy but exciting two months which wrapped up on May 31st,
as seen in the thousands of applications that flooded into our
Met Council offices.
In the wake of Hurricanes Katrina
and Rita, a 30 % increase in home heating oil occurred according
to KeySpan. In accordance with the mission of Met Council, the
H.E.A.T. program ensured that no person or family should have to
make a choice between one pressing need or another.
The program was recently featured
on ABC 7 Eyewitness News. To read about the story, please visit
ABC’s website. .
ABC Story
For
more information, please contact Karen Ginnis at (212) 453-9616.
Majority Leader Frist to
Focus on Healthcare Needs
United States Senate Majority leader Bill Frist joins with
Met Council CEO William E. Rapfogel at a recent event honoring
Rabbi and Mrs. David Cohen. Senator Frist and Rapfogel focused
their conversation on providing healthcare to the poor and
near-poor.
Another
Busy Passover for Met Council
Long before the first seder
begins, Met Council has already distributed 1.1 million pounds
of Kosher for Passover food. This huge task was accomplished in
partnership with 98 food distribution centers throughout New
York City. This effort will help to ensure that over 55,000
families will be able to fill their cabinets with Kosher for
Passover items. Sadly, as the poor and near poor grows, this
figure of families in need has risen by 20%. Thankfully, with
your support, Met Council has been able to meet the need.
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty
Honored
Presented With Senior Services Achievement
Award
For Health Promotion/Wellness Programs
Met Council’s Home Attendant Training Program (HATP) and
Director of Health Care Services Joyce Traina, RN, were selected
for the 2006 Senior Services Achievement Award in the category
of Health Promotion/Wellness Programs by the NYS Coalition for
the Aging. A check for $250 was allotted to each of the
awardees. The check was graciously passed on to Met
Council as a donation. This award lends itself to Met
Council’s dedication and commitment to New York’s aging
population. Congratulations to all of our staff on this well
deserved honor.
Met Council releases Jewish Near
Poverty in New York
Met Council proudly announces the release
of “Jewish
Near Poverty in New York”
, a report focusing on the disparity between Federal
government
assistance that is provided to residents
classified as “poor” (226,000 New York City Jewish residents)
compared to those classified as “near poor”. The gap exists
because so many Jewish near poor have salaries that make them
ineligible for most forms of means-tested governmental programs.
John Ruskay, executive vice president & CEO, UJA-Federation of
New York acknowledges that "This is the second New York.
Invisible to so many of us, yet in need of continued communal
support. Through UJA-Federation's ongoing support to our network
of agencies and through strategic innovative approaches,
we will continue to reach out to the near
poor -- those who don't qualify for government benefits and are
hovering on the precipice of crisis."
Click here to read the full report
Martin Luther King Day: Live the Dream
January 16, 2006 marked the 20th anniversary of the
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and the 11th year it has been
designed by Congress as a National Day of Service. King
believed, “Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You
don't have to have college degree to serve. You don't have to
make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart
full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
Across the Met Council network,
volunteers participated in this important day with a number of
projects totaling over 100 hours of service. Volunteers
sorted clothing, created food packages, and taught children at
Hillside House about Dr. King and his dream of equality. A
very special thanks to our volunteers Jill Lynn Ulicney, Amina
Owens, Linda Eborekle, Mia Fields- Hall, Yabre Kampaore, Lauren
Alnutt and the ECB High School for Public Service in Bushwick
for making this day a success.
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty Secures
$11 million for Senior Housing in Bronx
Jan. 3rd, 2005 - Chief Deputy Whip Congressman Joseph
Crowley (NY-07) announced that the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) approved a
grant of $11,030,500 for the Metropolitan Council on Jewish
Poverty (Met Council). The funds will be used for the
construction of 70 units of senior housing in the Co-op City
neighborhood of the Bronx. The funding was
awarded under the HUD’s Section 202 Elderly Housing program
which allows elderly persons, including the frail elderly, to
live as independently as possible in the community by increasing
the supply of rental housing with the availability of supportive
services. Met Council currently owns and operates four Section
202 residences that are home to almost 700 elderly residents, as
well as over 300 units for other special needs populations. “We
are excited by every opportunity to develop more senior housing
because the demand is so far beyond the supply. HUD and
Congressman Crowley have our gratitude for this Federal
commitment” said William E. Rapfogel, Executive Director/CEO of
Met Council.
For more information regarding the HUD grant, go to:
HUD Housing Grant Press Release
Met Council Celebrates
Chanukah in Brooklyn!
"Met Council
once again proudly partnered with Forest City Ratner Companies
to celebrate a Brooklyn Chanukah at the Atlantic Terminal Mall.
The party, held on the Sunday before Chanukah, was attended by
hundreds of children and families who marked the holiday season
a bit early! All enjoyed festive food including latkes and
sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts), as well as enjoying the talents of
jugglers, face painters, and clowns. “On behalf of Met Council
and our network of twenty-five Jewish Community Councils, we are
grateful to Forest City Ratner for their generosity and Brooklyn
officials who help us improve the quality of life of so many
vulnerable New Yorkers,” said Met Council CEO William Rapfogel.
“We look forward to continuing to work with them in the future.”
Home Attendant Training Program Announced!
Met
Council announces a new Robin Hood Home Attendant Training
Program. The evening certificate program provides training and
skills necessary to better equip low-income individuals to meet
the requirements of home care agencies that seek to employ
them. Thru hands-on training and skill-building, Home
Attendants will be more marketable and will be eligible to
pursue careers in the Health Care Industry.
Click Here to Learn More
This Year’s Forward
50
William Rapfogel recognized as one of the
American Jewish Community’s 50 most influential members
(New York) –
The Forward
announced this week its annual list of
The Forward 50,
recognizing leaders who have ‘made an impact on Jewish
life in America’ over the past year. William Rapfogel was
named for his persistence and determination in fighting
poverty on behalf of the city’s estimated 220,000 poor
Jews.
The Forward wrote:
Liberals spend a lot of time these days bemoaning the Bush
administration's cuts in federal funding for the poor.
William Rapfogel, longtime executive director of New
York's Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, spends his
time doing something about it. His agency, the only Jewish
organization of its kind in the country, spends about $120
million per year, nearly all of it government money, on
programs to serve the city's estimated 220,000 poor Jews.
One of the biggest nonprofits in New York, the council
builds and operates low-income housing, gives out food and
clothing, runs shelters for the homeless and mentally ill,
supplies home heating assistance, health care and much
more. A pragmatic Democrat who previously worked at the
Orthodox Union and the American Jewish Congress, Rapfogel
joined the council in 1992 and was a regular visitor to
the Clinton White House. Since President Bush's
inauguration, he's made it his business to stay on the
guest list. Bush happily touts him and his agency as
models of faith-based social-service delivery, and
Rapfogel reciprocates by appearing with the president and
talking up his programs. Most of what he has to say,
however, is about the persistence of poverty and the need
to attack it with determination, brains — and tax dollars
Others recognized included
members of the political, communal, and entertainment
worlds including Senators Arlen Specter and Charles
Schumer, Director Steven Spielberg, Comedian Jon Stewart,
Jewish leaders Malcolm Hoenlein, Howard Kohr, Abe Foxman,
and Richard Joel, and Rabbis Yehuda Krinsky, Yaakov Perlow,
and Eric Yoffie.
To read more about the
Forward 50, please visit the following link:
Forward 50
Met
Council marks Sukkot with Hurricane Survivors
Met
Council joined with the New York Board of Rabbis for a
special Sukkot luncheon. The gathering was held to welcome
two families who have temporarily re-located to New York as
a result of Hurricane Katrina and have been supported by Met
Council in this trying time in their lives. A number of
local leaders joined in the gathering to honor these special
guests. Pictured above are New York Board of Rabbis
Executive Vice President Rabbi Joseph Pitasnik, Israeli
Ambassador Arye Mekel – Consul General of Israel in New
York, State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and Met Council
Executive Director William Rapfogel.
Met Council’s
Response to Hurricane Katrina
A
Time for Community to Share
Evacuees
from Louisiana and Mississippi have already made their way
to New York and need our help. The Federal, State and City
government have established intake centers to provide
government benefits including health insurance and income
for a smooth transition into temporary life in New York.
Met
Council has already begun handling the cases of three
evacuee families who arrived in New York. Our Crisis
Intervention Department is working to ensure that these
families benefits are in place and they are safe
in temporary housing. Met Council offers assistance in
obtaining health insurance, career services, Kosher food,
and clothing to families in need. We have also lined up
scholarship assistance through day schools and foundations.
Additionally, we have reached out to our network of Jewish
Community Councils and their membership synagogues and
community institutions to find those that are able
to "Adopt-A-Family" with housing for evacuees in their
community.
New York
State officials are anticipating more than 5,000 evacuees
from the stricken areas to arrive in New York City. On this
large scale Met Council will be delivering a truckload of
clothing to the National Guard Armory in Jamaica, Queens,
New York State’s designated clothing distribution center on
Friday September 16th. Met Council will continue to support
the efforts of the Federal, State, and City governments,
especially as Camp Smith, New York’s intake center for
Hurricane survivors in Peekskill, NY is established in the
coming days.
Please
call Met Council's Crisis Intervention Hotline at 212 453
9536 or you may email us at
relief@metcouncil.org if you are in need
of assistance or further information.
Evacuees can also call the Federal Emergency Management
Agency/New York State Hotline at 1-888-769-7243.
To
donate please visit
www.metcouncil.org or visit UJA-Federation
of NY’s website at www.ujafedny.org.
Met Council
Marks its 29th Annual Legislative Breakfast
A tremendous morning was shared by all at Met Council's
Annual Legislative Breakfast on Sunday June 5th.
Just hours before the Salute to Israel Day Parade,
politicians and community leaders came together to share
ideas and discuss the pressing issues surrounding poverty
alleviation in New York City. Honored guests
included Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Senators Hillary Clinton
and Chuck Schumer, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and
local city leaders including Council Speaker Gifford Miller,
Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields, Anthony
Wiener, and Fernando Ferrer
Senator
Hillary Clinton was among the honored guests joining Met
Council at the breakfast. Included in the picture (L to R)
are Manhattan D.A. Robert Morgenthau, Met Council’s Board
President Joseph C. Shenker, and Met Council’s Executive
Director William Rapfogel.
Among this
year’s honorees was DFTA Commissioner Edwin Méndez-Santiago.
Joining Met Council in honoring him were (L) Assembly
Speaker Sheldon Silver and Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Met Council welcomes New
York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer
Met Council welcomed New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer
for a discussion on April 7th with Met Council
Board Members, Council Executive Directors, local community
leaders, and senior staff on the state of New York State.
Spitzer recognized the fine work Met Council does on a daily
basis and entertained questions
Tender Loving Care Program Launched
Today,
nearly one in ten Jewish "children" who are expected to care
for elderly parents are themselves 60 years or older. In a
recent UJA-Federation study Met Council found that 44% of
seniors aged 75 and older do not even have adult children
living in the area. Clearly, as the number of seniors
increases, the number of people available to care for them
is decreasing.
Metropolitan
Council on Jewish Poverty has a new innovative program
called Tender Loving Care (TLC), funded by the UJA-Federation
of New York, to provide affordable home care for elderly who
are not able to coordinate their own services or because
they have too much income for Medicaid home care but not
enough to purchase home care services on their own.
For
additional information about this new program please call
(212) 453-9688.
Thank you to our generous toy sponsors, The NYC
Comptroller's Office, CNS Network, UJA-Federation, and the
UJA Federation of Westchester who together donated
more than 6000 toys for the annual Met Council Chanukah Drive
As appeared on December 20, 2004…
Met Council among the 25
largest non-profits in the New York metropolitan area with
the lowest fundraising expenses - 0.2 % allocated to
fundraising - of all listed groups, and 94.8% of budget
allocated directly to program services.
(New York) - Continuing its growth as a
leading social service and community development
organization, the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty,
has once again made Crain’s New York Business’
annual list of the New York Area’s Largest Non-profits.
Met Council spends 94.8% of its $100.0
million annual budget directly on program services. The 5.2%
of the annual budget going to administrative overhead is one
of the smallest administrative percentages in the non-profit
world. Crain’s research showed that Met Council
spends the lowest amount of money on fundraising - spending
0.2 % of it’s %100.0 million annual budget directly on
fundraising.
“We are pleased that Met Council
continues to meet the growing needs of the poor and near-
poor among us,” said Met Council CEO William E. Rapfogel.
“We depend on the support of our funders, and we are
grateful for their continued faith in our work.”
Rapfogel continued, “We are proud of the
way that we stretch every dollar, because we know how scarce
they are.”
Crain’s bases
it’s prestigious annual rankings on extensive research and
surveys, as well as reviews of annual tax filings and
financial statements. Organizations qualify for the Crain’s
list if they are tax-exempted § 501 © (3) and headquartered
in the New York metropolitan are
Met Council was one of eight
organizations featured in a White House video viewed by
more than 2,000 - including the President, members of Congress
and the Cabinet, at a June 1st, 2004 conference sponsored by
the White House Office of Faith Based and Community
Initiatives. Met
Council's Executive Director and CEO William E. Rapfogel sat
on the dais with the President and seven other
non-profit leaders. The
video highlighted Met Council as a highly successful
community-based organization rooted in the Jewish faith.
Met Council's own JACKIE EBRON
was featured in The Daily News as one of 100 women who
shape our city!
Jackie is rightfully in the
company of women like Katie Couric, Senator Hillary
Rodham Clinton, Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez and New York's
Chief Judge, Judith Kaye.
From The Daily
News:
JACKIE EBRON
She has been dubbed the Mitzvah Mama, an apt tribute to an
African-American Episcopalian who has spent half her life
working with the poorest Jews in New York. As director of
crisis intervention at the Metropolitan Council on Jewish
Poverty, she oversees 50,000 people a year devastated by
unemployment, mental illness, old age and family violence,
offering them everything from a rent check to a sympathetic
ear.
NY’s Neediest Need Jackie
Director of Crisis Intervention, Jackie Ebron was featured by the
New York Times Neediest Cases as one of the most dedicated social
service agents in New York City. In Jackie’s 16 years with Met
Council she has helped clients stave off eviction and utility
shut-offs as well as supplied them with funding for rent, food, and
medication. In the last month alone Ms. Ebron has almost 200
clients referred to her by our network of 25 community councils.
At a time when the number of charitable donors in the city has
declined 14 percent and the number of people living below the Federal
Poverty Guideline is continuously increasing Ms. Ebron’s hard work and
dedication is even more essential than in the past.
Read the Story
A September 21st Wedding After Hurricane Katrina
A family uprooted from their home after the
devastation of Hurricane Katrina is blessed with help from A Met
Council Board Member.
A family of seven living in Louisiana lost
everything in Hurricane Katrina. The family electronic store was
flooded and looted, along with their home and all their possessions.
They were too despondent to think about rebuilding. Dreams of their
daughter’s wedding planned for September 21 were washing away in the
flooding. Amazingly, the entire family arrived safely in NYC and was
welcomed in the Crown Heights community. The Jewish Community Council
of Crown Heights embraced the family finding them a furnished
apartment upon their arrival. Met Council assisted the family with
clothes and food and began working with the family to rebuild their
lives.
The family desperately wanted the wedding to
take place as soon as possible. Met Council began telling and
retelling the story to find a way to pay for this joyous simcha. A
Met Council Board member heard the story and offered to pay for the
entire affair – the festive meal, the flowers, the photographer, the
video! The kind generosity of a Met Council Board member will give
this family a wedding for their daughter. Over 40 other evacuated
families will celebrate the Simcha in New York. After losing
everything to Katrina the family is rebuilding, starting with their
daughter’s wedding, symbolizing hope for the future and the goodness
of community.
"Establishment Agencies Should Run, Not
Walk, to Learn Met Council's Techniques if they want to Prosper in the
Next Decade"
"Groups like New York Federation's Metropolitan Council on Jewish
Poverty have simply succeeded in intermeshing with the
administration's priorities. The Met Council uses public-private
partnerships whenever possible, has a business plan, is a finalist for
strategic planning awards and promotes private sector solutions. The
President has identified Met Council as a model and has made personal
charitable contributions to its work. Establishment agencies should
run, not walk, to learn the Met Council's techniques if they want to
prosper in the next decade".
--- Marshall Breger, "Lesson's From the 2004 Presidential
Election", Opinion, Moment Magazine, February, 2005.
Bush to cut Millions from Social
Services
Bush Budget Would Cut Millions
From New York Services
By IAN URBINA
Published: February 9, 2005
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 - New York City faces deep cuts in law enforcement
and domestic security funds under President Bush's proposed budget,
but the largest reductions are likely to be in social services, city
officials said on Tuesday.
Under the proposed budget, released on Monday, the city faces the
loss of its $207 million Community Development Block Grant, which is
used to pay for day care centers, housing, services for the elderly
and literacy training for the poor. The city also stands to lose about
$31 million from another poverty reduction program that paid for
after-school programs and English classes last year for thousands of
immigrants.
The community development grant program now provides $4.7 billion
to cities and towns nationally, but the budget would eliminate the
grants, consolidating the money from that program and 17 others into
one $3.7 billion program. The Commerce Department, rather than the
Housing and Urban Development Department, would oversee the new
program.
The government now gives the money to the city without competition
or a detailed plan for how it will be spent, allowing it to move money
around to its most pressing needs, said Representative Jerrold L.
Nadler, a New York Democrat. Under the new program, he said, cities
would have to propose their spending plans in advance and compete with
other localities for the funds, although New York would almost
certainly receive some of the money it now gets.
"We're bracing for the worst," said William E. Rapfogel, who is the
director of the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, a nonprofit
group that provides home care to the elderly and runs a food pantry in
the city serving about 13,000 households monthly. The group receives
about $250,000 from the community development grants and about
$200,000 from the community services grants, said Mr. Rapfogel, adding
that requests for the group's services had doubled in the past four
years. "There couldn't be a worse time for these types of cuts," he
said.
To read more.... click here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/09/nyregion/09cuts.html?
"As cuts to services loom, the Jewish community is hooked on
Medicaid"
No Cure For Medicaid Habit
James D. Besser - Washington Correspondent
In 1975, when the Council of Jewish Federations opened its
Washington Action Office, Jewish leaders saw a gold mine in the
federal programs that were dramatically expanding America’s social
safety net.
This week, President George W. Bush announced a budget that critics
say could start unraveling that net. And politicians from both parties
say that with huge deficits and soaring defense costs, the funding
mine may be tapped out.
Likely cuts in Medicaid, a vital ingredient in the Jewish service
delivery mix, could have a particularly big impact on Jewish health
agencies, which focus heavily on the elderly.
For Jewish agencies across the country, and especially in New York,
government money has become the critical lifeline for a growing
population of vulnerable citizens, including the elderly and the poor.
“Over 50 percent of revenue that our agencies receive from
government originates with the Medicaid program,” said Ronald Soloway,
managing director of government relations for the UJA-Federation of
New York.
Even small cuts in Medicaid, or changes in how the money is allotted
to the states, can have a dramatic impact on Jewish health services,
Jewish leaders agree.
“Medicaid money goes down, and nursing homes and other institutions
start to cut services or close,” said an official with another Jewish
organization. “It’s as simple as that.”
For Jewish agencies across the country, and especially in New York,
government money has become the critical lifeline for a growing
population of vulnerable citizens, including the elderly and the poor.
“It’s a huge source of anxiety for us, but there’s no realistic
alternative to government money,” said William Rapfogel, executive
director of the New York Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, whose
agency has faced a doubling in Jewish poverty in recent years. “Every
year when we go through the city, state and national budget process,
there’s always the possibility of a crisis.”
Rapfogel’s organization, widely considered a model social service
provider, receives 97 percent of its funds from an alphabet soup of
government agencies — some direct from Washington, some passed down
through state and local agencies, each of which takes a cut for
“overhead.”
A tremendous amount of his staff’s time is spent writing and updating
grant applications and keeping up with the extensive, finicky
reporting requirements of government bureaucracies.
Rapfogel agrees with the Bush administration that there is room to
trim waste from programs like Medicaid, but said that in many cases
his agency is prohibited from doing that by rigid federal rules.
That’s a double bind for agencies that may be forced to do more with
less but are not allowed the flexibility to become more efficient.
Rapfogel said that major cuts in health and social service money
coming from the federal government cannot be made up through
charitable giving.
“There’s no realistic alternative,” he said. “We have been increasing
our fund raising, and we can and should be doing a better job at that.
But the amounts of money are huge.”
to read more.... click here:
http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/newscontent.php3?artid=10512
On December 7, 2004 the New York Times
featured an article on two of Met Council's clients in the 3 month
annual series of The New York Times Neediest Cases Campaign. The
article explained that Met Council provided financial assistance to
Jack and Fran Strauss-Baxter when they suffered from enormous
medical and rehabilitation bills after Mr. Baxter was struck by a
suicide bomb in Israel at Mike's Place on April 30, 2003.
Please read the article by clicking this link: http://nytimes.com/2004/12/07/nyregion/07neediest.html
William
Rapfogel, CEO and Executive Director of Met Council, speaks to the
participants of Northeast Queens Jewish Community Council's Annual
Installation and Award breakfast on October 31, 2004. Mr. Rapfogel
addressed the honorees, CLAIRE
SHULMAN, former Queens Borough President; KAREN
GINNIS, Met Council's Director of Community Network, and ETHEL
LEVINE, of the Hillcrest Jewish Center. Ms. Shulman
received the Council's "Award for Outstanding Service to the
Community of Greater New York," while the other honorees were
NEQJCC Vice President Ethel Levine and Karen Ginnis, Director of
Community Network for the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty.
The installation also
included remarks by Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, City Comptroller
William Thompson, former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer,
Member of Congress Anthony Weiner, Queens District Attorney Richard
Brown and Queens Borough President Helen Marshall. Council
Member Melinda Katz, who chairs the Council's land Use Committee,
led the guests in singing the National Anthem and State Senators
Frank Padavan and Toby Stavisky, Members of the Assembly Mark Weprin
and Michael Gianaris, Judge Bernice Siegal and a representative of
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, also attended.
MILLER AND MET COUNCIL DISTRIBUTE PASSOVER FOOD FOR THE NEEDY
New York City Council Speaker Gifford Miller and Councilmen Lewis
Fidler and Simcha Felder joined Metropolitan Council on Jewish
Poverty, Council of Jewish Organizations of Flatbush and Yeshiva of
Flatbush students to package and distribute food for the needy
before Passover. More than 30,000 families received food packages
this year through Met Council’s Kosher Food Network, in
partnership with Jewish Community Councils and the Food Bank For New
York City.
(L-R) William E. Rapfogel, Executive Director, Metropolitan
Council on Jewish Poverty; Speaker Gifford Miller; Councilman Lewis
Fidler; Councilman Simcha Felder; and Rabbi Yecheskel Pikus,
Executive Director, Council of Jewish Organizations of Flatbush
packaging Passover food for the needy at Yeshiva of Flatbush.
MET COUNCIL & SPEAKER SILVER OPPOSE CUTTING PUBLIC HEALTH INSURANCE
ALBANY – Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty joined more than fifty
community leaders and social-service providers in Albany to support
legislators’ opposition to proposed cuts that would eliminate
funding for community-based enrollment in New York’s public health
insurance programs. Met
Council joined a delegation representing six organizations to meet
with Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who pledged to continue leading
the battle in Albany to save these critically important public health
insurance programs. Speaker
Silver said “The
Assembly will continue to do all it can to ensure these programs are
accessible to the people they are intended to serve.
That includes fighting to reverse the Governor's wrong choices
of eliminating facilitated enrollment for Family Health Plus and of
reducing funding for Child Health Plus facilitated enrollment.”
Lisa Gaon, Met Council’s Director of Child and
Family Health Plus (second from right) and other advocates meet with
Speaker Sheldon Silver to discuss continuing access to public health
insurance
MET COUNCIL AND MAYOR BLOOMBERG BRING SHALOCH
MANOT TO BROOKLYN SENIORS
Met Council CEO William E.
Rapfogel (r) joined with Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Councilman
Simcha Felder in delivering 100 Shaloch Manot to seniors at
Brookdale Senior Center in Brooklyn.
Met
Council’s Legislative Breakfast a Resounding Success!
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(R-L) Met
Council CEO William E. Rapfogel; President Joseph C. Shenker;
Speaker Sheldon Silver; Met Council's Man of the Year, Mayor Michael
Bloomberg; Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton; and Met Council Chair
Merryl H. Tisch.
On Sunday, June 1st, the
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty honored Mayor Michael
Bloomberg as our “Man of the Year,” at our 27th Annual
Legislative Breakfast. Met Council also presented awards to
City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr.; Council Members Joel
Rivera, Melinda Katz and Lew Fidler; Assembly Members Helene
Weinstein and Jose Rivera; Commissioners Linda Rosenberg and
Jonathan Greenspun; the Nash Family Foundation and Food Bank For New
York City. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Hillary Rodham
Clinton, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Council Speaker Gifford
Miller also delivered remarks.
Attendees at Met Council’s
breakfast were ecstatic to hear Mayor Bloomberg’s acceptance
speech, during which he announced that the Extended Services Program
would be included in his Executive Budget for the upcoming fiscal
year. Restoring the Extended Services Program was a high
priority for Met Council and our network of Jewish Community
Councils, as it allows us to help seniors in crisis find the
assistance they need to stave off eviction, pay overdue utility
bills, obtain government benefits and a host of other
services. Your advocacy and the efforts of thousands like you
helped persuade City Hall how important this program is.
The Met Council network is
forever grateful that the Mayor and the City Council were able to
find the funds to continue this vital program. Click
here to read The New York Sun’s report on Met Council’s
breakfast and click
here to read about Extended Services in The Jewish Week.
Thanks again to all who reached out to government leaders to express
your concerns about this proposed funding cut!
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Bush
Again Points To Met Council
Cites Met Council as example of the focus of his faith-based
and community initiatives
Met
Council CEO William E. Rapfogel greeting President Bush as he
disembarks Air Force One.
(Philadelphia, December 12)
– For the second time this year, President George W. Bush
pointed to the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty as an
example of the need to implement the President’s Faith-Based
and Community Initiative. On Thursday, addressing a
diverse group of faith- and community-based service providers
at the White House’s Regional Conference on Faith-Based and
Community Initiatives in Philadelphia, the President pointed
to Met Council as the kind of organization his initiative was
designed to assist. The President described his outrage
at learning that Met Council had been cautioned against
applying for federal programs because the word “Jewish”
was in its name.
“If a charity is
helping the needy, it should not matter if there is a rabbi on
the board,” said the President.
This summer, in a
speech at a Milwaukee Church, President George W. Bush pointed
to Met Council as the kind of organization his faith-based and
community initiatives was designed to assist. The President
said:
"…reality is
that sometimes faith-based groups are prohibited or
discouraged from even applying for federal grants. Last week,
my director of the faith-based initiatives met with the
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty out of New York. It's a
group of people who want to help; they feed the hungry for
their community. They feed the hungry regardless of somebody's
religion. They don't ask, what is your religion; they ask, are
you hungry. But because of their name and their identity,
federal officials have repeatedly discouraged them from
applying for federal funds."
Also, at the
Philadelphia conference, Met Council CEO William E. Rapfogel
served on an “Elders in Need” panel discussion sponsored
by the White House. Rapfogel described Met Council’s
thirty-year history of helping the needy and its growth into
one of the largest social service provider organizations in
New York today.
“I am deeply
honored to be asked by the White House to participate in this
conference,” said Rapfogel. “As a community-based
organization, I hope that Met Council’s participation will
assist our fellow organizations faced with the ever difficult
task of serving the needy, especially during these hard
times. The President’s continued appreciation of Met
Council’s work is heartening.”
Founded in 1972, Met
Council is one of New York City’s largest social service
provider organizations. Met Council coordinates a
network of Jewish Community Councils located throughout New
York City with an array of programs designed to meet the needs
of the poor, working-poor, middle class and immigrant
residents of New York. This neighborhood network is the
first line of defense for people in need. Crain’s New
York Business reports that more than 95% of Met Council's
operating budget goes directly to programs and services, with
less than 5% spent on administration.
Met
Council joins EITC campaign
Met Council joined with the
NYC Consumer Affairs Department, the City Council and several
community organizations and businesses at a City Hall press
conference to publicize the availability of the Earned Income
Tax Credit for low-income households. Through our
network of local councils, we hope to reach some of the
estimated 230,000 New York City residents who don’t file for
the EITC. The city estimates that this costs New York
over $350 million in economic activity. Met Council is
doing our part to help our community take advantage of this
tax credit and help our city’s economy during these
difficult times. Click
here for more information about the EITC Campaign.
15,000 Lbs.
of Kosherfest Food Distributed to Jewish Poor
Kosher Today
New York City- As
exhibitors were packing their bags after another
successful 2-day Kosherfest, a team from Met Council and
City Harvest lugged carton after carton of food items
from displays throughout the convention center to
waiting trucks. Within 24 hours, approximately 15,000
pounds were distributed to Kosher Food Net pantries in
various locations throughout New York City.
This year's
"surplus" food from the food show was the
largest ever, officials of the Metropolitan New York
City Coordinating Council on Jewish Poverty told Kosher
Today. Met Council, a broad-based organization, has been
an advocate for the Jewish poor since 1973. It provides
an extensive array of services to the Jewish poor
including housing, employment, and diverse social
services through its network of 32 Jewish community
councils throughout the New York Metro area.
 The
mission of the Met Council Kosher Food Net is to insure
that no person goes hungry for the lack of kosher food.
"This year's impressive contribution by the kosher
food community is heartwarming, given the increased
demand for kosher food in the aftermath of the attack on
America," said William E. Rapfogel, Executive
Director of Met Council. "Thousands of families
have benefited from the generosity of the exhibitors and
Met Council on Jewish Poverty is grateful for their
support."
The Met Council/City
Harvest Kosher Initiative provides the most needy
clients with supplemental cooked meals. Due to budgetary
limitations, Met Council's officials say, a large number
of needy people are on a waiting list. "Food
donations are urgently needed," says Wendy
Liederman of Met Council. Officials are hoping that a
newly formed Kosher Advisory Board consisting of many
prominent people from the food industry will help guide
the effort to secure food for the Jewish poor. Ms.
Liederman said that the organization was also looking
for ample warehouse space for its pantry, which is now
located in Flatbush, Brooklyn. "Exhibitors are
thrilled with the idea that they can contribute food to
the Jewish poor at the end of the show," says
Phyllis Koegel, Kosherfest show manager. "Some
exhibitors called many weeks before the show to inquire
about donating the food rather than lugging the food
back with them.
Experts say that as
many as 140,000 Jews in the New York area are either
poor or near poverty. Many are elderly who live alone
and are serviced by organizations like Met Council and
the Jewish Association for the Aged (JASA). Community
groups like Keren Aniyim and Tomchei Shabbos are
increasingly serving younger Jews in the community who
may be amongst the growing number of jobless in the
city, particularly after September 11th. Social workers
point out that it is not uncommon to see a middle class
Jewish family plunge into crisis as a result of illness,
death or the loss of a job.
While many of the
poor require clothing and furniture, Met Council
officials say that there is a growing need for the food.
"It is unfathomable that in today's day and age
that there are still Jews who go hungry," the
official said. Crisis intervention is an important
centerpiece of Met Council's services. It is often at
this point that social workers learn of a need for food.
As a Jewish sponsored agency, Met Council provides only
kosher fare. It credits such organizations as City
Harvest for being sensitive to the needs of the needy
that require kosher.
* Kosher Today |
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