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A Safe Place to Call Home

    A Safe Place to Call Home

    Tania* was a Mom to four children, resourceful and dedicated to their well-being. She had also been a victim of domestic violence for more than 16 years. With the help of a city domestic violence agency she was finally able to secure a safe place to live in public housing and resume an independent life.

    All was well until Tania ran into difficulties paying her rent and soon found herself in the midst of eviction. It was then that our friends, Liz and Bruce Gitlin, founders of the New York Center for Law and Justice, met Tania. The Center provides assistance to the New York indigent deaf and hard-of-hearing community, and with their help Tania was able to remain in her apartment. All was well until her former batterer discovered her location-Tania and her children had to quickly move in with a relative and forego their independence.

    Determined to return to independent, safe living Tania worked hard to locate a new apartment which would be unknown to her batterer. Last December her dream was fulfilled as she and her family moved into a new apartment in a safe city neighborhood. When we heard Tania’s story we were pleased that her life seemed to be turning around, but were stunned to hear that the family was sleeping on the floor with no furniture or other basic household items. Something needed to be done and with the help of our donors the Good People Fund immediately stepped in. Within a few days, our funds, along with the help of a generous storeowner, provided the family with beds, a couch, table and chairs and other household items.

    Once again, small actions, do have huge impacts.

    *Tania is a pseudonym

    Just a Freezer…

    It is such an essential part of our work…using modest sums of money to make a world of difference–we see this every single day.

    When Pam Koner from Family to Family called a few weeks ago, she reported that the Thoreau, New Mexico Navajo community that she works with had an opportunity to get more frozen and fresh food product at reduced prices (or even free), if they could come up with more refrigeration.

    When you realize that unemployment in Thoreau stands far above 50% and the region’s lack of paved roads and infrastructure, sub-standard housing and poor transportation, you just know that hunger is a huge problem here.

    The Good People Fund’s investment of only $700 purchased a large refrigeration unit which will bring more food, at lower cost, to this nearly forgotten community.

    It was that easy.

    WE LOVE OUR NEW MACS!!

    Over the years, we have gotten beautiful notes of thanks from all of our programs–each warm and heartfelt. But–the email that just arrived from our friends at FoodForward really put a smile on our face. It is clear that Rick Nahmias>/strong>, the program’s founder, and his cool staff really do love the new MACS that the Good People Fund provided in a recent grant.

    We hope that lots more citrus fruit can be gleaned and shared with hungry people with the help of these new computers!

    The Wonders of Technology

    We are rarely surprised by the wonders of technology…how close we all are despite the physical distance that may separate us.

    Nothing made this clearer than the following video which arrived in an email yesterday. It was only three weeks ago that we visited Zane Buzby,

    the founder of Survivor Mitzvah Project in Los Angeles. In anticipation of her upcoming trip to Eastern Europe we gave Zane several thousand dollars to distribute to the many survivors she would visit on her journey.

    Watch the following short video. I know that it brought tears to my eyes and chills down my spine. We agree that the woman Zane visited is an angel, but most definitely feel that Zane herself qualifies for that title as well.

    Kung Fu-Israeli Style

    The self defense program is very close to my heart, especially as Adina learns to ride the city buses going and coming from school. Being aware of what’s going on around you and feeling confident as you move around is something many kids take for granted. Our teens need to learn how to interpret the world and how to handle the unexpected – that’s what we’re aiming for in our self defense courses.

    The writer of this short note is Miriam Avraham, co-founder of Shutaf which provides inclusion programming for both special needs and typical kids in Jerusalem. Miriam was writing to us after we let her know that we had received a generous grant for Shutaf’s self-defense project from the Lillian Fund out of the West Hartford Federation. This grant will cover the cost of self-defense sessions for the girls’ program while other funds will underwrite the boy’s sessions.

    Why the need? In Israel, as in other countries, violence in school is on the rise. A significant number of kids do not feel safe while attending school and this is not limited to cases of bullying. Studies show that women with disabilities report twice the number of incidents of abuse than non-disabled women. How great that this grant (and additional funds) will empower the Shutaf kids, give them more self-confidence, make them aware of the dangers around them, learn to use physical and verbal signs to ward off impending danger and finally, teach them simple self-defense methods in the event of possible attack.

    The Good People Fund is excited about making this connection and to be able to support this meaningful program.

    Great Bar(k )and Bat Mitzvah Projects

    We at HAMA received your incredible box of leashes and toys, and we have already put them to use. They are indeed a wonderful therapeutic contribution to HAMA’s animals and people. It has taken some time to get this letter to you, because I was waiting for these pictures, so you could see your leashes and toys "at work"…If you look carefully you will see how much all our therapy dogs and kids enjoyed them.

    Needless to say, the animals are delighted by their new toys and leashes, and I was overwhelmed by your thoughtfulness and creativity. You guys really did a spectacular mitzvah on our behalf!

    Avshalom

    As you can see from this letter, there is no end to the creativity kids come up with when they are planning their Bar/Bat Mitzvah projects.

    The Good People Fund works with many young people and one young woman who we recently spoke with loved animals. When we shared the meaningful work of Avshalom Beni and HAMA (Humans and Animals in Mutual Assistance-Israel) she knew immediately that this was a program that she wanted to help.

    HAMA provides animal-assisted therapy to people with many different types of problems. The "co-therapists" are actually dogs and even some cats, many of whom have experienced abuse themselves.

    Looks like this "therapist" is quite satisfied with the new toys.