‘HOPE’ HELPS
Holistic aid at Bowery Mission site
Some organizations aid New Yorkers with some of life’s basic needs, but the 138-year-old Bowery Mission is comprehensive — providing food, clothing, shelter and life-transforming services to those in need. And since last year, East Harlem residents have been reaping the benefits of the Bowery Mission’s comprehensive programs and goals.
Since it opened in September 2016, The Bowery Mission’s Community Hope Resource Center at 315 E. 115th St. in East Harlem has provided free legal, medical, dental and career services for community residents and literally helped transform their lives.
David Jones, president and CEO of The Bowery Mission, personalized the way his Community Hope Resource Center’s services and workers have been helping East Harlem residents cope with the complexities of life over the past 11 months.
“Lisa, a mother of two living in NYCHA’s Jefferson Houses across the street from the Community Hope Resource Center, was receiving financial and other support from the city. She came to the Center for eyeglasses provided through our optical services operated by volunteer licensed professional optometrists,” said Jones. During her visits, he said, Lisa learned about and accessed the center’s other services, became certified as a home health aide and earned her high school diploma (GED). Jones explained that the Community Hope Resource Center is part of a tradition
of coming to the aid of New York City residents that began in 1879.
“For the past 138 years, The Bowery Mission has used its resources to meet the needs of those experiencing poverty. Today, we celebrate our commitment to provide the residents of East Harlem with the same holistic care as we direct to our residential clients in order to address access and process barriers to receiving needed services,” said Jones.
The Bowery Mission has operated a residential recovery program for homeless men in East Harlem since 2013. Poverty and many of its accompanying ills in the area made it an ideal place to establish the resource-rich Community Hope Resource Center, which operated in an area rife with unemployment and low-income households.
Community Hope Resource Center’s services and resources include personal development (life skills, vocational, and legal and social services), mental wellness (recovery, mental health and pastoral assistance), and physical health (medical, dental and optometry).
Since last year, more than 500 community residents were assisted by the Community Hope Resource Center, which was initially funded by a $200,000 grant from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation Neighborhood Builders program. For information, visit www.bowery.org or call (917) 834-6728.