Jewish Community Services of South Florida headquartered in North Miami, one of sixteen nonprofits receiving funding to provide trauma and grief support to those who have experienced devastation or loss
WASHINGTON, D.C., Oct. 23, 2018 – Recognizing the need for long-term local assistance for those who have experienced a natural disaster or act of mass violence, New York Life and the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities today announced the selection of Jewish Community Services of South Florida (JCS) as one of 16 nonprofit, community-based organizations to receive grants to continue their work in communities affected by disasters in 2017 and early 2018. These grants are part of a new program, Building Resilience in the Face of Disaster, jointly operated by New York Life and the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities that seeks to provide long-term emotional and mental health services and support for communities that have faced large-scale tragic events.
JCS will provide children ages 0-8 with trauma focused counseling, as a result of Hurricane Irma and the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Services will be offered in the community and provided by a license mental health counselor with expertise in cognitive behavioral therapy, play therapy, and infant mental health. In addition, JCS will provide trauma-informed care trainings and outreach efforts to inform residents of disaster preparedness/ response resources within the community of focus.
“Mental health is a crucial component in strengthening relationships, empowering individuals and creating healthier families,” said Fred Stock, President & CEO JCS. “This grant award from New York Life and Alliance for Strong Families and Communities will enable JCS to provide trauma-focused counseling and support services to children ages 0-8 who reside in the Liberty City community, as well as provide trauma-informed care trainings to parents, professionals and paraprofessionals in the same community.”
Each grantee will receive up to $50,000 as part of the $750,000 available through the program. Recipients were selected based on their level of experience and knowledge in trauma-informed care and/or grief support services; level of experience in providing support to individuals who have experienced tragedy; and plans to measure success, effectiveness, and impact. More than 90 organizations applied to the program.
“This program aligns closely with New York Life’s commitment as a company, which is to be there for people for the long-term, even when the unthinkable happens,” said Heather Nesle, vice president, corporate responsibility, New York Life. “After a disaster, the response is typically focused on addressing immediate needs or physical losses. The 16 grantees will help those traumatized by disaster, violence or loss to cope with long-term, ‘invisible’ grief, which can be detrimental if it’s not addressed.”
“This program reflects our continued focus at the Alliance to accelerate and integrate the latest in brain science research and trauma-informed care into social sector practice, policy and systems,” noted Susan N. Dreyfus, president and CEO of the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities. “By building resilience in the face of disaster, we can strengthen the capabilities of community-based organizations to promote the health and well-being of individuals, children, and families in the communities they serve.”
The grants, which are provided by New York Life, will be administered by New York Life in partnership with the Change in Mind Institute at the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities. For a complete list of grantees, go to Press Release
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About JCS
Jewish Community Services’ mission is to improve the quality of life and self-sufficiency of the Jewish and broader communities throughout South Florida in accordance with Jewish values. Since 1920, Jewish Community Services of South Florida has remained true to its original mission of providing exemplary human services through compassionate and comprehensive programs that promote health and productivity. JCS is a Beneficiary Agency of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, and an Impact Partner of United Way of Miami-Dade. For more information, please visit www.JCSFL.org or call 305.576.6550.
About New York Life
New York Life Insurance Company (www.newyorklife.com), a Fortune 100 company founded in 1845, is the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States* and one of the largest life insurers in the world. Headquartered in New York City, New York Life’s family of companies offers life insurance, retirement income, investments and long-term care insurance. New York Life has the highest financial strength ratings currently awarded to any U.S. life insurer from all four of the major credit rating agencies**.
*Based on revenue as reported by “Fortune 500 ranked within Industries, Insurance: Life, Health (Mutual),” Fortune magazine, 6/1/18. For methodology, please see http://fortune.com/fortune500/
**Individual independent rating agency commentary as of 7/30/2018: A.M. Best (A++), Fitch (AAA), Moody’s Investors Service (Aaa), Standard & Poor’s (AA+)
About the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities
The Alliance for Strong Families and Communities is a strategic action network of thousands of committed social sector leaders who through their excellence, distinction, and influence are working to achieve a healthy and equitable society. We serve as an incubator for learning and innovation to generate new solutions to the toughest problems and aggregate the very best sector knowledge. We accelerate change through dynamic leadership development and collective actions to ensure policies and systems provide equal access and opportunity for all people in our nation to reach their fullest potential through improvements in health and well-being, educational success, economic opportunity, and safety and security. Go to alliance1.org for more information.
In January of 2018, the Alliance and the American Public Human Services Association released a groundbreaking report that offers an important cross-sector call to action to address the challenges facing human services community-based organizations, which play a vital role in the human services ecosystem, comprised of the nonprofit sector, government agencies, and the philanthropic sector. A National Imperative: Joining Forces to Strengthen Human Services in America was commissioned by the Alliance and APHSA and was conducted and written by Oliver Wyman and SeaChange Capital Partners. The report was supported by a national advisory council whose members came from non-profit human services, government, the private sector, and academia. Funding for the project was provided by The Kresge Foundation and the Ballmer Group, with additional support from the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York, Mutual of America, Selective Insurance Company of America, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
About the Change in Mind Institute
The Change in Mind Institute at the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities aims to increase the common understanding of the core story of brain development and intensify this knowledge into the social and public sectors. We believe through continuous innovation and alignment of practice and policy with knowledge, research, and evidence on how the brain develops, we will enhance the skills and capacities we all need to be healthy, happy, and contributing citizens. The Change in Mind Institute operates as a hub for disseminating knowledge, provides training and technical assistance on the integration of brain science research, and engages in cross-sector innovation on the transformation of organizations, sectors, and systems as they adapt to the new applications of the science.