0 Greater Newark Children Find Hope & Freedom Through Generosity

At summer camp, Niyea and Naziah traded cement for trees, and fear of unsafe encounters for fear of scraped knees.

On the daily bus ride to camp, the girls enjoyed seeing ponds and farm animals in fields. Once there, they could be found bike riding, swimming, playing games, performing drama, music, and more. 

These aren’t common scenes when you live in the urban environment of northern New Jersey, where almost 30% of the households are at or below the poverty level, and gun violence is a common occurrence. 

Mom, Janet, was thrilled for her young girls to get a break from the city, a chance to live without worries about their surroundings. Janet had fond memories of childhood camp but knew her income wasn’t enough. She was thrilled when Newark Day Center offered her children a camp scholarship, courtesy of the generous Fresh Air Fund.

When donors support the Holiday Fund, they are actually supporting 10 different agencies in the Greater Newark Area; agencies that have spent hundreds of years of combined service to the children and families of the community. Services like:

• A landing space for teens to receive education support, peer support, and community exposure, supported by Family Connections. Kids love the chance to get out of the city and hike in a state park for the first time, or see a show on Broadway!
• An exciting online coding class for young people of Newark, developed by the Urban League of Essex County. 
• Saturday Fun Club of the New Community Corporation engages children ages 5 to 12 while providing a safe and nurturing environment.

Every time a donor gives to the Holiday Fund, these organizations receive support. Every donation is distributed among 10 NJ agencies, who work tirelessly to serve the most at-risk and disadvantaged lives in their community.

A donation means more kids attend summer camp, more young people enroll in a coding class, and more teens have a safe place to hang out after school. 

Through your generosity, Greater Newark children find hope and freedom. We hope you’ll donate today.

0 How generosity helps young adults in New Jersey reach their goals

For many of the youth in northern New Jersey, one misstep can turn into a major detour. 

Though making mistakes is part of growing up, for disadvantaged youth who do not have support and safety nets available, those missteps can be tragic.

That’s where community support comes in. 

Life-affirming programs, run by seasoned professionals from reputable organizations (like those we partner with at the Holiday Fund) have hundreds of years of combined experience serving the youth and young adults of northern New Jersey communities. 

Let me share a few of the exciting ways these service agencies connect youth with necessary resources:

• Teens and older adults pursue education by attending a GED preparation class at the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark.
• Young adults who previously have been involved in the court system gather and receive prevention and transition services at Urban League of Essex County’s Face Forward Urban Youth Empowerment Program. prevention, assessment, intervention, and transition services
• Students 16 and older prepare for their futures by attending class at New Community Corporation’s Adult Learning Center, where more than 2,000 individuals are pursuing a vocational or college education. 

We celebrate with the young people who are receiving assistance and creating a safety net of their own, thanks to these experienced agencies. 

When you support the Holiday Fund, you contribute to agencies like these who support youth at every turn. 

We live in one of the most affluent communities in the world, and our youth shouldn’t have to miss out on opportunities to build a secure future for themselves. Youth in New Jersey shouldn’t live disadvantaged and vulnerable lives today. 

Let’s celebrate together the achievement of youth receiving help and support. 

P.S. If you want to support the Holiday Fund, you don’t have to wait until the holidays. Though we do the majority of our fundraising during that season, we welcome donations at any time of year. 

0 How one woman went from homeless to chef

As soon as the evenings turn cold and bitter, I think about those individuals and families in NJ who are facing the night without shelter. 

Then I think about our compassionate and experienced partner agencies who have already planned for nights like this and are prepared to offer help — agencies like New Community Corporation, Catholic Charities and many more. 

Connecting the individuals in need with staff from these caring organizations is what excites us most at the Greater Newark Holiday Fund. 

We raise funding support for 10 social service agencies during their highest season of need, which allows them to put more energy into serving and empowering individuals and families. 

In a recent article, we shared the incredible story of Paula, who has literally gone from homeless to chef. 

Her exciting career advancements and personal growth would be exciting to watch regardless of her background, but knowing that she has gone from doubting her abilities to believing in herself makes the story even sweeter. 

Check out Paula’s story and transformation on our blog, and find out how empty plates bring her joy.

We hope you’ll check out the work of the Greater Newark Holiday Fund this season and consider supporting all of these local agencies with one easy donation. 

0 This is What Determination Plus Assistance Can Do

Did you know that many of our 10 partner agencies offer services that support mental health? Through the programs offered by our partners, individuals are finding hope again.

Here is just one of hundreds of stories about personal resilience and the dedicated work of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark. 

In just under a decade, the life of Erasmo has changed drastically. 

Almost 40, he has schizophrenia, and came to the Catholic Charities/Mount Carmel Guild residential program in 2010 after experiencing a mental health crisis that saw him hospitalized for more than a year. 

As we see commonly with those who are living with untreated mental illness, he also had been homeless several times.

After Erasmo was stabilized, he was admitted to a group home, where he began to learn independence: the importance of taking his medication regularly and staying educated about his mental illness. He developed coping skills to help deal with his feelings and symptoms of mental illness. 

During this time, Erasmo attended Catholic Charities’ Mount Carmel Guild Partial Care program every day, attending groups and continuing his personal advocacy education. Once he began to thrive in the group home, he transitioned to an apartment facility.

Upon graduating from the Partial Care program in 2018, Erasmo began serving as a role model and peer to other residents in the program. 

He credits Catholic Charities/Mount Carmel Guild Partial Care program for providing what he needed to learn how to face reality: care, education and assistance. He said:

“This place has brightened up my life and eased the pain of being homeless. I feel braver about my life. I have people who help me. I know that I can utilize my counselors, staff, and doctors.”

We love this story.

1. A young man was able to experience independence from the challenges that often face individuals with mental illness.
   
2. The programs offered by Catholic Charities are better as a result of residents like Erasmo.
   
3. He paid that experience forward by serving as an example to his peers in the program. 

Isn’t that exciting? We think so!

I am sure you have stories of your own that are a testimony to the power of persistence and determination—stories from your own vault, or stories from loved ones who’ve overcome obstacles. 

We’d love to hear them and be encouraged. Tell us in the COMMENT SECTION below!

We hope you’ll consider supporting our partner agencies who offer assistance to individuals like Erasmo who are experiencing mental illness, like Children’s Aid and Family Services, Nutley Family Service Bureau, Family Service League, and more. You can give to all of these agencies with one donation here.

0 Your generosity empowers advocacy for survivors of violence

Unlike never before, we can all relate to the feeling of fear and uncertainty.
But for some, it’s a daily occurrence after surviving a violent crime.

Sometimes that fear and uncertainty lives in the next room. 

More than 1 in 4 New Jersey women and men experience a violent assault in their lifetime. 

And in 29% of these cases, children are present or involved. 

We are grateful that our partner agencies — like Family Service League of Essex County —  provide confidential and respectful trauma responses to New Jersey Families. 

Earlier this year, nj.com reported on the survivor story of a college freshman who’d been attacked. 

When a college freshman ended up in ER after being assaulted by another classmate, a compassionate advocate from Family Service League was called to help. Advocates provide information/referrals, support, and also explain the rights and options a victim has available. 

FSL advocates also provide tangible resources like clothing, water, food, and toiletries to replace what is collected as evidence, which is a crucial step to restoring dignity after an assault.

Like FSL, other Holiday Fund partner agencies are taking action against violence through education, counseling, medical/legal accompaniments, and confidential hotlines. 

Here are just a few:

• Family Connections Domestic Violence Services (Read more here)

• Family Service League’s S.A.V.E. of Essex County (Read more here)

• Jewish Family Service’s Trauma / Rachel Coalition Children’s Services (Read more here)

The staff and volunteers at our partner agencies work tirelessly to advocate to restore dignity to survivors and their families. 

We are grateful your generosity is helping to facilitate solutions in New Jersey! Your donation is funneled to agencies like these so they can continue their advocacy. 

You can give online anytime here. Your donation means more survivors are cared for today.

0 How New Jersey Families are Finding Hope

Did you know that 8.5% of households in New Jersey experience food insecurity? 

That’s 273,136 people! 

It is overwhelming to know that people living next door might be wondering how they’ll feed their family this weekend.  

Families shouldn’t live so vulnerably.

And many of our partner agencies are taking action to alleviate hunger in the Greater Newark area. 

• The Food Pantry program of the Nutley Family Services (Read about it here)

• The Emergency Food and Nutrition Network of over 80 organizations led by the Catholic Charities of Newark (Read more here)

• Emergency Food Pantry for residents of the New Community Corporation (Family Service Bureau) (Read more here)

One of our partner agencies, Nutley Family Service Bureau, recently shared a word of gratitude from a family of seven. 

“The help we received from Nutley Family Service Bureau has given my family a moment to catch our breath, a safety net for the times we needed some food, school supplies, and gifts for the children.”

Your generosity empowers stories like this. Your donation helps families find a safety net when things get difficult. 

Has your family participated in giving funds or donating goods together? I’d love to hear your story. Hit REPLY and let me know. 

P.S. If you’d like to give towards one of the efforts above, click here to donate to the Holiday Fund. Every donation you give is funneled to 10 partner agencies and helps directly with efforts like these.