Thread: NY-WestCOP expands serv. for low-income residents, illegals

WestCOP expands services for low-income residents, immigrants
By Dwight R. Worley • dworley@lohud.com • August 7, 2009

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The Westchester Community Opportunity Program, a not-for-profit social services agency that has worked with poor and at-risk populations for more than 40 years, is expanding its mission with the help of private donors.





Community centers that provide employment training, tax assistance and after-school programs are now offering English and citizenship classes. More low-income residents can get help with everyday needs such as utility bills and car repairs. And an expected influx of $2.1 million in federal stimulus money will help pay for nearly a dozen new community advocates to help residents with housing, hunger and other issues.



"Despite the bad economy and the conditions we've inherited, we're still strong and looking to be stronger," said Luis Quiros of Mamaroneck, WestCOP's chairman. "We're looking for more resources so we can keep expanding."



Quiros said WestCOP, which has a $29.5 million annual budget, is broadening its reach because the area's poor and middle class need more help, particularly in this troubled economy. Several of the new initiatives benefit illegal immigrants, who Quiros said don't have many options to economically empower themselves.



The organization's expanded mission, serving residents and illegal immigrants alike, is part of what Quiros calls the "neighborhood" approach to social services.



WestCOP has always focused on providing services in specific communities through its Community Action Program centers, which coordinate services for the disadvantaged in 11 villages and towns in Westchester and Putnam counties. The difference now: Any needy individual who lives in those neighborhoods is eligible for some type of service, regardless of citizenship.



Indeed, WestCOP plans to use more than $2 million in Community Service Block Grant funds to hire a community advocate at each of its CAP centers. The advocates will help anyone in the community with basic needs, employment and other issues.


Many of WestCOP's programs - substance-abuse counseling and insulating homes, among them - are government-funded and cannot be provided to undocumented residents. But Quiros has worked to raise private donations that allow WestCOP to help immigrants become self-sufficient and pursue citizenship. Donations have increased about 10 percent to about $300,000 during the four years Quiros has been chairman, said Winston Ross, WestCOP's executive director.



"We have to find private money to make tax money more effective," Quiros said.



"We're not looking at whether they're undocumented or not," Ross said. "We're looking at it as a group that has to be served."



The small pot of private money is stretched a long way.



At the Brewster CAP, people can get help with car repairs, while other CAPs use private funds to supplement grants that provide emergency rent and utility payments.



At the Mamaroneck CAP, donations pay for a baby-sitting service. With their children taken care of, participants are free to take part in programs such as Proyecto Madres, which empowers Hispanic women through education on topics from domestic violence to finance.



Immigrants might benefit from some programs, but Ross said the services are not focused on them. Anyone who meets a program's requirements, which are typically based on income, is eligible.



Impressed by its outreach efforts, Shauna Samuels, 42, of the Bronx has donated money to WestCOP.



Samuels, who came from Guyana in the early 1980s, said many people provided her with assistance, including her employer, who paid for her college education.



"That makes me want to give back," said Samuels, a tax accountant. "I know how tough it is. People come here, can't speak the language and are trying hard to make a go of it. I have to support that. I can't turn my back."


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ratbstard wrote:

If pandering to illegal aliens gets you mad google 'Joe Legal vs. Jose Illegal' and you'll get FURIOUS!
8/8/2009 12:57:02 AM