Celebrating the 70th graduating class of our Culinary Arts Training Program!
…Project Renewal’s Culinary Arts Training Program honored for success
By: Mitchell Netburn, President & CEO
I am proud that our Culinary Arts Training Program was selected by the NYC Center for Economic Opportunity as a Top 10 Finalist for the first annual Innovative Nonprofit Awards. At an awards ceremony with Mayor Bloomberg at Gracie Mansion, Project Renewal and nine other nonprofits were recognized for their impact in breaking the cycle of poverty. The Mayor cited our innovative approaches and evidence-based practices that help clients train for and secure jobs in the food service industry.
Congratulations to CATP Director and Founder Barbara Hughes, to Executive Chef Anthony O’Connor, and to all the staff and program graduates who have proven the program’s success over 17 years.
“The finalists stand out for making use of best practices and for representing a new way of doing business that can contribute to reducing poverty in New York City.
NYC Innovative Nonprofit Awards recognize community partners who have used data analysis to achieve excellence, while also encouraging other nonprofits to innovate and compete.”
-Mayor Michael Bloomberg
The Center for Economic Opportunity spotlighted CATP for innovation and impact training homeless men and women for jobs in food service.
Please support this outstanding program by joining me at our annual Gala or making a gift today. Your support will put more CATP graduates on the path to jobs and financial security.
By Patrick Germain
Mitchell Netburn, our President & CEO, and I are going around to every Project Renewal and MBMC site to hold RISE Implementation Forums where we are talking about our Strategic Plan, and hearing from all staff on how RISE can be implemented across the organization. So far, we have talked with over 200 staff, and we are only about a third of the way done!
So far, we have met with the EDC team, Fort Washington Men’s Shelter, Leona Blanche House, Geffner House, Parole Support and Treatment Program, Next Step, and half of the Varick Street administrative staff. We are scheduled to go to the other programs in the next couple of weeks and we can’t wait to talk to you all about this!
In these Forums, we are having discussions about each of the strategic priorities that make up R.I.S.E (Recommit, Integrate, Strengthen, Expand) and we are collecting ideas from all staff about how Project Renewal can achieve those goals. We have heard some great ideas and hearing the passion and dedication that all of our staff have is truly humbling and inspiring. Mitchell and I are excited to have this opportunity to listen to the great ideas that everyone has. I want to say a big thank you to the people who have helped organize this and to everyone for participating, and I am looking forward to updating everyone on some of the next steps for our strategy once we finish these RISE Implementation Forums!
Stay tuned for more information about how you can be involved in helping Project Renewal RISE into the future.
What is the HOPE Survey?
In February New York City’s Department of Homeless Services and hundreds of volunteers completed its annual point-in-time HOPE census of the unsheltered homeless population, first conducted in 2005. The report details changes in the count of unsheltered homeless men and women by borough, and identifies whether they are found living in the subway stations and trains underground or at street level.
What does this mean for Project Renewal?
At Project Renewal we focus on serving the hardest to reach homeless men and women—those with mental illness, drug addiction, or both. These clients are most often homeless without shelter (those represented by the HOPE Survey) or are among the 11,000 single adults living in emergency housing.
So what can you do to help?
Four nights every week we partner with Manhattan Outreach Consortium to increase outreach to homeless men and women not in shelters by providing primary care through our medical vans.
These mobile clinics bring healthcare to homeless men and women where they are, delivering primary care to those who are also struggling with mental illness and addiction.
On those nights, healthcare providers seek out street homeless clients in places where they gather including behind the Port Authority Bus Terminal and the Harlem Y. The goal is to treat health needs before they escalate to emergency room visits and to encourage patients to seek ongoing care ideally in a residential treatment program.
What can your gift do today?
$15
Provides needed items such as socks and sweatshirts, which ensures follow-up visits for continued care
$50
Stocks the MedVan with first aid and over-the-counter medications for a week
$100
Covers an OraQuick HIV/AIDS test and counseling
$5,000
Gives 25 patients access to the MedVan, our mobile clinic that provides healthcare, psychiatry, lab testing, and pharmacy all in one van
Bertha Alford, PSTP
PSTP held a pot luck lunch on Wednesday April 25th so program staff and other Project Renewal Staff at Varick could mingle.
It was a lunch filled with a lot of laughs, networking and plenty of good food. Everyone enjoyed the event. It was also an opportunity to say farewell to Garra Faber of S.T.E.P, and welcome our new employees.
Homelessness can rob a person of their sense of independence and self-worth. But as the men and women we work with regain their health, self-sufficiency, and housing we empower them to become their own advocate.
A newly formed coalition—United to End Homelessness—launched their campaign on the steps of City Hall last month, and our clients were there to make their voice heard. Joseph White, Recreation Specialist at Ft. Washington Men’s Shelter, reports on the day:
By: Joseph White
April 9th was a very good day; I and several clients went down to City Hall and joined with the United to End Homelessness campaign to speak about the importance of housing. The steps of City Hall were filled with various organizations that all came together for the same cause.
The Homeless United demonstration held on the steps of City Hall was an inspirational and uplifting event. It was an event that stood for Hope and Fairness, an event that brought different organizations from all over the city together. In a united fashion, over two hundred strong, we stood. We stood and we were heard. THE STEPS OF CITY HALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME.
Several clients attended; here are their experiences in their own words:
Derrick Neptune
My experience at the demonstration was very fulfilling for myself and the benefit for others that are homeless. I feel like I’m a part of a revolution for the neglected.
Michael Jordan
It was one of the most uplifting experiences I had in my life. I met very important people who gave me hope. The system works if you work the system. I’m looking forward to housing, and I’m also looking forward to participating in any other future events that support my cause.
Jose Rodriguez
I felt like I was a part of something big.
John Webb
It was hot but I was happy to be here.
Matthew Pukala
It was an honor to be here, I felt like I helped my cause. I gained a sense of what it is like to be in a situation representing the public in a matter of importance to many people.
It was a great day for the men. I always love when the clients feel like they’re a part of the solution and the world.
A special thank you to Ft. Washington Director Etta Graham for setting up and organizing the field trip for us.
United to End Homelessness
United to End Homelessness is a new coalition of advocates, homeless and formerly homeless individuals, service providers, faith leaders, and experts on the issue of homelessness in New York City.
Supportive housing ends homelessness! Geffner House staff members joined City Council Member Annabel Palma at a City Hall rally on March 18 to urge restoration of social service funding slashed in the Mayor’s proposed budget for FY 2014.
Clinical Director Amy DeFilippi (lower left) gave her first-hand account of how case managers help tenants regain health and stay out of shelters, prisons, and emergency rooms. Her work experience is backed up by a 2010 HASA study that found that on-site case managers reduced emergency room visits by 90% and resulted in savings of $80,000 in acute care PER person per year.
In Amy’s own words:
The right to housing and the right to healthcare are necessary, together, to end homelessness in New York. Homelessness and poor health are locked in a cycle of cause and effect. Poor health puts one at risk for homelessness, as it is estimated that one half of the personal bankruptcy cases in the US are caused by health problems. Many of these people, particularly those with mental health and substance abuse problems, end up in the costly shelter system and flood our emergency rooms with needs better served by primary care physicians.
Supportive housing works to end the cycle of homelessness for our city’s neediest people. It is a permanent solution to homelessness that links people with mental illnesses, substance abuse issues, HIV/AIDS to cost affective, affordable and stable homes. With on-site case management and a full time clinical staff, tenants have the support they need to address their ongoing health, mental health, and addiction issues.
I am the Clinical Director Project Renewal’s Geffner House, a 307 unit SRO, or Single Room Occupancy, in Times Square. A large percentage of our clients are from HASA. In New York City alone there are 4,500 tenants with HIV/AIDS living in supportive housing. I have been working as a supervisor and case manager for several years and in this time I have seen the work that on-site case management does to stabilize people which limits their recidivism into the shelter system, prison, and emergency rooms.
In working with one of my clients I have witnessed his four yearly inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations dwindle to two years without any inpatient visits. With my support he has found the right mental health providers to stabilize him psychiatrically, and I have provided him with the consistent reminders necessary to take all of his medications daily. He has now developed a healthy routine that he did not feel was possible from his many years of being street homeless. With my support and encouragement he has established consistent medical services. The stability in his health has given him the courage to battle his 45 year substance abuse and dependence problems. I am happy to say that he is now one year sober and counting. He attributes this to the daily support and encouragement our consistent therapeutic relationship has provided him. To use his words “you have reminded me that I have something to live for”.
I have come here today to say that the proposed budget cuts will not save tax-payers money. Churchill, Truman, Dostoyevsky have all said something along the lines of “A society is indeed measured on how we treat our most vulnerable population”. If we truly believe this as a society, then these proposed budget cuts are preposterous. They won’t save our city money, but they will deprive some of our most needy fellow New Yorkers of the much needed services and support required to live an independent life.
These proposed cuts will not save tax payers money. In 2010 HASA did an analysis of HASA funded supportive housing sponsored by Harlem United. They found that the result of on-site case managers reduced emergency room visits by 90%, and nursing home reliance by 54%. This resulted in a savings of $80,000 dollars in acute care PER person per year.
I am here to thank you for restoring the budget cuts from last year, and to thank the City Council for its ongoing support of HASA programs. But I am here, for the third year in a row, to ask you to continue to make supportive housing programs a priority for some of our neediest New Yorkers and to restore the proposed budget cuts.
More photos from the day
On the night of March 15th a party to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day took place at Geffner House. About 50 tenants attended and ate meals consisting of corned beef, cabbage and potatoes, and salad. A beautifully decorated and delicious sheet cake was for dessert.
Boxed meals were brought to about 13 homebound tenants. Music of the Chieftains as well as soul, and R & B was played. A good time was had by all!
Alarmingly, homeless New Yorkers have a 1.5- to 11.5-times greater risk of dying relative to the general population, depending on age, gender, shelter status, and incidence of disease.
But the causes are changing.
According to this 2012 study by the NYC Department of Homeless Services, the top cause of death for both the NYC homeless population and the general population is heart disease.[1]
Regular visits with a primary care provider are essential to identifying heart disease and helping homeless patients to manage this health condition before it escalates to crisis levels. Our comprehensive services to homeless New Yorkers include integrated healthcare—patients are connected to care through our shelter-based clinics, medical vans, and referrals in our transitional and permanent housing residences.
Prevention begins on the streets where our medical vans are providing critical interventions to assess patients’ heart disease risk: in the past year, we assessed 61% of clients for cardiovascular disease risk. The vans are also reducing patients’ risk by helping them to manage co-occurring conditions which could lead to heart disease, such as smoking and high blood pressure. In the past year, our vans provided tobacco cessation interventions to 77% of patients and helped 60% of hypertensive patients to control their blood pressure levels.
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[1] NYC DHS. Bronx Health and Housing Consortium: Opportunities for Collaboration. Shared Approaches to Death Prevention Among Homeless Individuals. Dec. 2012
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Project Renewal: Homeless Patients, High Quality Healthcare February 2013 Quality Improvement Grantee Spotlight
To successfully treat more than 8,600 homeless patients a year, you have to be dedicated and diligent. HRSA-supported health center Project Renewal finds that it also pays to hold yourself to the same quality standards as providers who practice in a less challenging environment.
Controlling hypertension is never easy, but when your patients tend to seek care irregularly, move frequently, have a high prevalence of both chronic and acute conditions and distrust the medical system, it seems almost impossible.
But that’s exactly what Project Renewal has done. In 2011, 51 percent of hypertensive patients had their blood pressure under control; a 2012 chart review shows the number has climbed to 60 percent, thanks to close monitoring of medication compliance with an assist from local pharmacy students working with the program.
Knowing that the many homeless patients will not come to Project Renewal, Project Renewal goes to the homeless patients.
Three mobile clinics (CARE – A – VANS), certified by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as Level 1 Patient Centered Medical Homes, regularly and at all hours go to homeless shelters, emergency housing and even New York City parks where homeless people are known to congregate.
They start small, first just walking around and becoming familiar to the homeless people. Over time, their presence in the community earns a level of trust and they begin to offer health services.
Because hypertension is so common and such a health threat, Project Renewal focuses on its prevention and treatment by providing health checks that include blood pressure and cholesterol testing at the first opportunity.
To help ensure patients follow treatment plans and remain in care, Project Renewal connects patients with other resources, verifies their eligibility for Medicaid and uses the electronic health record to schedule follow up appointments, order medications and exchange patient health information across providers.
Patients who later seek care at another Project Renewal mobile or freestanding clinic find providers who have instant access to their full health records and are fully prepared to respond in a patient-focused way that is consistent across providers.
Construction is well underway and on time and budget to be complete by winter 2013!
The building will be a 108 bed homeless shelter for men with mental illnesses, and construction is 50 percent completed and on schedule to open in Fall 2013.
Director of Facilities Ernie Talbot with Philip Jenkin, architect.
Local Bronx artist chosen to create entryway sculpture
Linda Cunningham, an artist who lives and works in the Bronx, was selected to build a decorative wrought-iron grille for the front façade of the building. It will screen the outdoor front entryway space from the street, and provide color and texture to the front façade. The grille is currently being fabricated by Linda and her team of student assistants, who are bending very long, 2” wide bars of steel into curved, organic shapes to look like blades of grass. These curved bars will then be welded to rectangular frames to create four panels. The panels will interlock when they are installed at the front of the building, and the resulting work of art will span around 23 feet.
The ironwork will blend in nicely with the brick and stone façade, and the grille will last many decades because of the durable wrought-iron construction. The grille will also define a welcoming border space by the front door for those going in and out of the shelter, defining the outer edge of a patio area with comfortable wood benches and a view to the street.
Artist rendering of wrought-iron grille design
A Dutch client shares his story with the group.
Even across the ocean, the issues facing homeless men and women with mental illness remain urgent and complicated.
A group of clients and staff from the Netherlands visited Clinton Residence and Safe Haven. This unique gathering allowed both groups to exchange knowledge, programmatic information, success stories, hospitality, recovery, treatment and friendship.
The room was filled with upbeat energy and lots of laughs as together they celebrated Clinton Resident client Benito’s 59th Birthday. The Dutch clients brought the gift of a special cheese knife from the Netherlands to share with Benito something unique and characteristic of their culture. With a large smile Benito claimed, “Living here gets better all the time.”
Bentoumi, a client accompanying the Netherlands group, is originally from Morocco and here he serenades the group with a song in Arabic. He said, “With big changes in your life you always need some people who help you further and give you the strength and motivation to survive during your recovery and reintegration process. With the help of others, you can change, move forward in your life.”
More about Geffner House
In 1995, Project Renewal transformed the Holland Hotel, a 21-story/307-unit single room occupancy hotel, into Geffner House. Located on West 42nd Street in Manhattan, Geffner House provides apartments to 246 adults who qualify for housing subsidies, the large majority of whom are formerly homeless individuals coping with substance abuse, mental illness, and/or HIV/AIDS. The remaining 61 units are fair market apartments. Services for the mentally ill and recovering substance abusers include case management, psychiatric care, medical care, crisis intervention, recreational/socialization activities, skill development in activities of daily living, vocational rehabilitation, and assistance with entitlements and legal problems.
By: Patrick Germain, Director of Evaluation and Strategy
Mark Hurwitz left his position as Deputy Director at Project Renewal on January 18th to become President and CEO of Palladia. It was my pleasure to work with Mark for the past two years and while his absence will be felt throughout the agency, we know that he continues to be a fearless leader and passionate advocate for the most chronically homeless people in New York City. His dedication and hard work on behalf of Project Renewal has led to great achievements for the organization. Under his leadership, we built and opened two new housing programs in the Bronx, Renewal House and the Fletcher Residence, which provide housing for 105 men and women. He also secured the site for a new homeless shelter that we will be opening later this year. His visionary leadership around the development of the strategic plan helped us clarify our vision and rally the organization around a common goal. We wish him the best luck in his new position.
By: Tom Cirolia, Program Director, Project Renewal Recovery Center
I have had the privilege to work with Pat Brummett, the former Clinical Coordinator at the Project Renewal Recovery Center Outpatient Clinic both as a counselor new to the field and as the Program Director of the Clinic. When asked to write a brief essay about Pat a few descriptive words immediately came to mind: Dedication, Experience and Integrity. Pat was truly a CASAC (Certified Alcohol Substance Abuse Counselor) at heart; it was a calling for her, one she excelled at and one that she always took great pride in.
Pat’s dedication to our clients was unmatched, and although she could be described as “tough”, clients quickly realized that this toughness was really her commitment to help them break free from the grips of addiction. And everyone knew that underneath her tough exterior was a caring professional who would go the extra mile for her clients. Whether it be opening the clinic up every morning at 8 AM or living in the clinic during Hurricane Sandy everyone in and around Third Street knew that Pat would be working the front lines at “OPD.”
Pat’s 20 + years of experience working as a counselor and supervisor on the Bowery with the homeless population provided a sense of confidence to her peers; there seemed to be no incident or client issue that Pat hadn’t dealt with as we always turned to her for sound clinical input and guidance. Although the clients and staff all miss Pat’s presence we wish her the very best in the next phase of her life.
In Homes Now residents visited the office on Thursday, December 20th for a holiday party. Mitchell Netburn, CEO, and Stephanie Cowles, Associate Director, also attended. The staff cooked and served the clients a great dinner and at the end of the party, the clients received a towel set purchased with the help of Director of Operations Judie Maron! 55 clients attended the event. Additionally eight residents came to the Holiday Decorating Party on Monday, December 3rd at the IHN Office. We all baked cookies, made ornaments, and helped decorate the tree.
Client Jose Taveras and staff member Carmen Nazario, Administrative Assistant.
Erin Blacik, Social Work Intern, and client Kenrick Ward.
By: Jay White
This year our Christmas Luncheon featured a Dress for Success Fashion Show. The goal was to help the men know the importance of appearance for interviews and for self-esteem. They borrowed suits from our “Suit for Success” closet of donated clothing and visited our on-site “Barbershop Plus” for haircuts. As they walked the runway, the men were able to share a little of their plans and hopes and how a good appearance makes them feel.
Mark Thiry, Medical Department, and Martha Aguilar, Mental Health Department
Erica Quan and Joice Knuckles, Fiscal Department
Ann Paul, Administration
Catherin Zellner, Fiscal Department, and Charles Allen, Operations
From left to right: Gloria Viveros, Nava Kantor, Tanea Pugh, Alison Restak, and Molly O’Brien, Next Step Employment, and Kelsey Petrone, Development
Meet some of the staff of New Providence Women’s Shelter, working tirelessly to keep homeless women with mental health and substance use issues fed, warm, safe, healthy and housed on their journey to permanent homes.
Residential Aide Jamell Coach and Program Aide Supervisor John Brown
Roberto Muyet – Asst. Building Manager.
Rasheda Smith – MTC Senior Case Manager.
Deanna Emezue – MTC Case Manager
Andrea Saunders – Housing Specialist
Chenay Aziz – Entitlement Specialist.
Assistant Director Lorraine Garcia and Program Aide Supervisor John Brown
Patrick Pierre – Clinical Director.
Sam Govorcin - Recreation Specialist
Your support of Project Renewal enabled us to not only continue serving struggling New Yorkers already in our care, but to step up and help our neighbors when they needed it most.
100 Bed “Pop-up Shelter” at Ft. Washington helps displaced storm victims
By: Awilda Morton
On Monday, November 5th the Department of Homeless Services asked us to have 100 beds ready. DHS supplied cots, our maintanence team supplied linens and Comfort Foods provided the food. By the afternoon of Tuesday November 6th the shelter was open and ready for evacuees from shelters damaged by superstorm Sandy!
It went smoothly and the visiting clients used our cafeteria and common areas and we made caseworkers available to them. By Sunday everyone was able to return.
Economic Development Corporation
By: Fred Hornedo, Assistant Supervisor, Graffiti Removal
We were on standby for the storm and then after the storm hit we started to get phone calls from the people who were hit—Staten Island, Far Rockaway. We were just waiting for the word on whether they needed help. So they said get the trucks ready and fill them all up with fuel.The city mobilized the EDC teams to respond to the most devastated areas. Project Renewal had about 20-30 guys with 9 trucks plus supervisor vehicles.
When we got out there it was really bad—no power, no heat, water everywhere. It looked awful— like a disaster area.The residents had no power to run their pumps. By giving a hand we let people plug into the generators on our trucks out there with power strips plus extension cords running lines into people’s houses. Many people needed to use them to charge their cell phones so they could contact loved ones. We moved rubble, rubbish, and debris and pumped their houses. More people started coming later, but even arriving on Friday we were first responders—the National Guard, National Grid, Red Cross came later and started pitching in. But they still didn’t have power.
We gave a hand however we could with whatever we had. People had good spirits, they were happy to see us. But after the third or fourth day people were down with no power. If they had gotten power back sooner they would have been better off.
Seeing how bad it was, I didn’t realize it just from TV, it was heartbreaking. I would have run out there by myself if I had known how bad it was—I would have volunteered my time in a heartbeat. These were just regular people who didn’t ask for this.
Osmundo Robinson, Assistant Supervisor, Area Maintenance
Just devastating, shocking almost. I was speechless. People losing their houses, taking stuff out of their houses. We went out on Friday cleaning up debris that came out of the water, and we were out there two days. It was surpising, a lot worse than anyone expected. Where I live it didn’t hit that bad. But to see how it affected them was shocking. I passed by Breezy Point and it looked just like a garbage dump. We were some of the first people to show up—and that was Friday.
3rd Street Men’s Shelter
Barbara Hughes, Director, Comfort Foods and Culinary Arts Training Program
When the storm hit we were able to get the generator running immediately, which enabled us to keep the kitchens going. We opened up our doors to the neighborhood and served hundreds of extra meals, in addition to the clients staying at the shelter!
© Project Renewal
212.620.0340
200 Varick Street
New York, NY 10014
