There’s no one-size-fits-all approach for the over 60-set. As one of the city’s eight new Innovative Senior Centers (ISCs), the BronxWorks Morris Senior Center is now an example of what services for older adults should look like in the 21st century.
Some 126 seniors were on hand on Saturday, January 21st, for the center’s kickoff ceremony. It is now known as the BronxWorks Morris Innovative Senior Center.
State Senator Gustavo Rivera spoke and praised BronxWorks for being the only Bronx-based organization to have an ISC and said he was proud to have it in his district.
BronxWorks Family Shelter Children Take "Pictures of Hope"
Pictures for sale as greeting cards
Award winning photojournalist Linda Solomon recently brought her Pictures of Hope project to one of BronxWorks' shelters for homeless families. Through a grant from Chevrolet, Ms. Solomon presented cameras to the children and gave them lessons on how to take the best pictures. She then took them around their South Bronx neighborhood to snap pictures representing their hopes for the future.
Please watch this story on Pictures of Hope from The TODAY Show.
BronxWorks Senior Services Director Maria Rivera, former Morris Senior Center Director Esther Sanchez-Polanco, and NYCCOA Vice President Nancy Miller
On October 14th, the New York Citizens’ Committee on Aging (NYCCOA) recognized five outstanding senior centers, one in each borough. For the Bronx, they selected BronxWorks’ Morris Senior Center “for its dedicated services to its members and community.”
BronxWorks Executive Director Carolyn McLaughlin (back left), Senior Services Director Maria Rivera (back center), and members of the Morris Senior Center
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NY Times profiles great reduction in Bronx street homelessness
On October 18th, The New York Times reported on the 80% reduction in street homelessness in the Bronx since 2005. BronxWorks, which is contracted by the city to perform street homeless outreach in the Bronx, can take much of the credit for this change.
The front page story discusses the success of the Housing First approach. BronxWorks Homeless Outreach Team director Douglas Becht and US Marine Corps veteran Marvin Shepard, who was helped by BronxWorks, are interviewed.
Click here to read the New York Times front page story.
Click on the video below to watch the New York Times TimesCast.
On Sunday, September 11th, Mrs. Louise Mitchell, unquestionably the oldest BronxWorks program participant, celebrated her 107th birthday. Born in Sparta, Georgia in 1904, Mrs. Mitchell has been a River Park Towers resident since the complex opened in 1974. BronxWorks has run a senior services office there since 2006.
Faces of Success Event Celebrates Overcoming Homelessness
On Wednesday, August 17th, BronxWorks held its Faces of Success event at Fordham University. The purpose of the evening, which was attended by over 170 people, was to celebrate the successful transition of nearly 100 formerly homeless persons to permanent housing. The gathering was the first of its kind and featured a photo display, a video, and testimonials by several individuals who once lived on the streets, including former boxing champion Iran Barkley.
BronxWorks Teen’s Design Chosen for Times Square Billboard About Youth Violence
Nina Rivera, a teen at the BronxWorks Betances Community Center, created a design that was chosen to represent SPEAK UP NYC, a citywide youth violence prevention program. The artwork has been posted on a digital billboard in Times Square. The unveiling took place on July 12th at MTV Studios with City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) Commissioner Jeanne Mullgrav, and members of the Center to Prevent Youth Violence (CPYV).
AARP Releases Hunger Report at BronxWorks Morris Senior Center
BronxWorks Assistant Executive Director John Weed introduces the press conference
On Friday, June 10, the AARP held a press conference at the BronxWorks Morris Senior Center to announce their new report, “Older Adult Food Insecurity: Framing the Issue in New York State.” The report discusses the need to increase access for seniors to food assistance and nutrition programs.
Jeanne White-Ginder, the mother of Ryan White, the Indiana teen who helped change the face of HIV/AIDS in the United States, was the keynote speaker at BronxWorks’ annual AIDS conference. The conference, which was attended by over 300 people, was held on Wednesday, June 8th at the Rose Hill campus of Fordham University. After a day of workshops, the conference ended with remarks by four BronxWorks participants who have benefited from the services of the organization’s Positive Living Department.
