family promise newsletter april 2012

We are so honored to be part of an agency that has the incredible ability to

truly affect the lives of those facing the trauma of homelessness. Our work

is more than a band aid during difficult times, but a true resource and long

term solution to help people become once again self-sufficient and

independent.

Unique in our approach, we utilize existing community resources, and bring

the mission of volunteerism right to the doorstep of those who wish to

serve. Our families feel welcome and that they belong, every day. With our

new name, Family Promise of Morris County, we are underscoring this sentiment – our promise to

those we serve is to make them feel like family. Great thanks to our staff, board, community

partners and to our families who fight to overcome challenges every day!

Dominique Tornabe, Board President and Joann Bjornson, Executive Director

Message from the Board President & the Executive Director

Meet the Board

Dominique A. Tornabe President

David Bess

Vice President

Ally Cannon Secretary

Ginny Donnellon Treasurer

Michael S. Daigle

Trustee

Karen DeChristopher

Trustee

Mirna Del Valle

Trustee

Robert DiConstanzo

Trustee

James A. Kassis, Esq.

Trustee

Wendi Mazzucco

Trustee

Meet the Staff Joann Bjornson, LSW

Executive Director

Allison Wise Dir. of Programs & Svcs.

Jon K. Thomsen Director of Operations

Nina Rifkind, LCSW Director of Development

Lou Bodian Bookkeeper

Katie Meier Family Support Specialist

Social Work Interns Michelle Duff

Brian McCullough

Nancy Molinari-Luque

Ending Homelessness

One Family at a Time

April 2012

Joann & Dominique at

Volunteer Recognition

Dinner

Formerly Interfaith Council for Homeless Families of Morris County

New Leadership Councils

In order to be an effective advocate for our families, Family Promise of Morris County looks for

support and guidance from the community. With this in mind, last year a Corporate Leadership

Council was formed and early this year, the newly created Student Leadership Council came

together to help us to achieve this endeavor.

The Corporate Leadership Council (CLC) allows professionals to share their knowledge and

expertise; allows these leaders to learn about Family Promise; provides opportunities for corporate

leaders to serve as Family Promise ambassadors through networking opportunities; and benefits

both the business and non-profit communities.

Members of the Corporate Leadership Council are drawn from major business sectors: banking;

energy; manufacturing; media; professional services such as legal, accounting or insurance; real estate;

retail; telecommunications; and small business. A member is asked to commit to four meetings

annually, and attend 1 to 2 Family Promise events.

The Student Leadership Council (SLC) presents an opportunity for interested student leaders

to engage in community service through Family Promise. The mission of the SLC is to ensure the

safety and acknowledge the dignity of the community’s most vulnerable families through public

service, the development of leadership skills, and a growing consciousness of the needs of our

families.

The goals of the SLC: directly serving the community’s disadvantaged families; bringing the mission of

Family Promise to the high school level; leading the community to a stronger, more unified effort to

end homelessness; educating peers about the urgent needs faced by our neighbors and beginning

discussions that lead to greater participation leading to solutions; and uniting diverse community

groups under a common cause.

SLC functions: fundraising; education; service projects; assisting in event planning and preparation;

and making recommendations to the staff and board of Family Promise.

For additional information, or to inquire about joining, contact Executive Director Joann Bjornson at

973-998-0820 or j.bjornson@familypromisemorris.org.

“We had no place to live.”

That’s a hard truth to accept, especially for a parent.

For Crystal, a single mother with two infants and pregnant with a third, the move

into the Family Promise of Morris County Emergency Shelter Program was not only

a place for her family to live but also a place for them to thrive.

Our Families

Page 2 Ending Homelessness One Family at a Time

l-r: Frankie, Elila, Crystal and Jesse

Crystal became homeless after her grandparents were no longer able to continue to help her and her growing family.

After coming to Family Promise, staff and volunteers provided her with financial literacy education, support in completing

her high school equivalency diploma, and help sorting out all those issues that come with motherhood.

“I didn’t know they’d do that,” she said. “I thought it was just a place to sleep.”

Crystal began working full time while living in the shelter. In addition, she completed her GED program and received her

high school equivalency diploma. Equipped with some new life skills, enjoying the sense of accomplishment that comes

from achieving one’s goals and dreams, and benefiting from the on-going support of Family Promise, Crystal is now looking

to further her education. Just recently, she let us know that she has begun the process of enrolling in nursing school.

Crystal is so thankful for the guidance and support of the volunteers at both Family Promise and the Adopt-a-Family

Program, especially Lance & Nancy Kraai.

Lance & Nancy, along with a group of other volunteers that included a teacher and some young mothers with small children,

worked with Crystal for 18 months to help her develop new skill sets which would allow her to thrive independently. The

group focused on the following key areas: general life, financial, and, just as importantly, parenting skills.

“Crystal has been on her own since she was 14,” explained Lance. “She never had the

chance to learn parenting within a family. It’s hard to learn discipline with children when

you never had any. What is proper discipline for a 1-year-old, a 5-year-old?”

Kraai said that as a child Crystal saw her sister removed from their home by state

authorities, and in her young mind, concluded that her sister was taken because she

cried too much. As a mother, he said, Crystal was determined that it would not happen

to her children and she did whatever she could to stop them from crying.

Working with the Adopt-a-Family volunteers, “Crystal learned how to discipline in love

as a parent,” said Kraai. “She is an awesome mom — she just needed some help.”

Since leaving the Emergency Shelter Program, Crystal’s days are filled with her new job caring for an elderly person and

getting her children to school and day care.

“It was a boost for my confidence,” she said of her time at Family Promise. “That was hard for me, I didn’t have

confidence. It is still hard for me.”

But Crystal didn’t leave the shelter alone. Family Promise’s Permanent Supportive Program staff still supports her efforts to

move forward.

“I tell people that my time in the emergency shelter was good for me and my children,” she said. “My children had clothes,

toys and had new people to meet. The shelter for a woman my age with children is a safe place to live.”

Now 25, Crystal said there was one very important lesson she learned while at Family Promise: “I have big plans for my

family,” she said. “I realized that when I am 30 or 40, I would not be able to live the way I was living.”

Family Promise is so much more than a place to sleep: it is a home base, a safe place for children, a place

where parents can stop a moment and breathe, assess life’s challenges and opportunities, and make a plan for

the future; it is a community of supporters, teachers and friends.

Lance & Nancy Kraai

Wish List

Baby wipes

Diapers and Pull-Ups—Sizes 5/6

Liquid laundry detergent (Regular and HE)

Paper Products – toilet paper, paper towels, and tissues

Cleaning Supplies

Shampoo and Conditioner

Small and large garbage bags

Large contractor garbage bags

When our families move into their own homes they

are provided with a computer. The wish list items

below assist family members as they look for work,

do homework, or just play a game.

Copy paper

Stamps

No. 10 white envelopes

Avery Labels No. 5160

Most welcome items

These items are of special importance to our families, as

they allow them the luxury of going to a local store and

choosing their own purchases, being it an outfit in a favorite

color, a particular pattern on their dishes, or the makings

for their favorite meal. These are unexpected treats for

our clients and thus are especially appreciated. Gas cards (any gas station)

Wal-Mart or Target gift cards

Food Store gift cards

We are thrilled to announce that we recently received a $25,000 one-year grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

President’s Grant Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation. This wonderful grant will allow Family Promise of

Morris County to provide case management services and connections to resources for a minimum of 50 new families, through

our Permanent Supportive Housing Program (PSH).

Families will partner with Family Promise’s PSH staff to develop personal goals, the attainment of which will lead to better job

prospects, financial literacy, less stressful parenting, or any number of positive outcomes that will result in meaningful change in

their families and foster self sufficiency. Parents are taught how to advocate for their children and themselves when needed

and to find the resources needed and available to help maintain a safe and stable family environment.

We are incredibly excited about this ability to provide services for even more families in Morris County who find themselves

precariously housed. We know how much this will help the community and want to find a way to keep this position funded

beyond the first year. To that end, we have created a match program to leverage grant funds. If you are interested in

supporting this effort, please contact Joann Bjornson, Executive Director for more information.

Wish List & Most Needed Items

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Grant

Page 3

Placing a family in housing addresses one of their most important needs. But it

does not solve all needs. Many of our families also have basic living needs that

relate to attending school and working and caring for a family.

The fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Morris County is $1,289 a month. In order to afford this

apartment, a household would need to earn over $51,000 per year. At the New Jersey minimum wage of $7.25 an

hour- that's 135 hours per week, 52 weeks a year!

Did You Know?

Contact Information:

Phone: 973.998.0820

Fax: 973.998.0819

Web: www.familypromisemorris.org

Email: info@familypromisemorris.org

Church of God in Christ, Morristown Church of the Redeemer, Morristown

Church of the Saviour Episcopal, Denville Denville Community Church First Memorial Presbyterian Church, Dover

First Presbyterian Church of East Hanover First Presbyterian Church of Rockaway First Presbyterian Church of Stirling

First Presbyterian Church of Succasunna

First Presbyterian Church of Whippany First Reformed Church of Lincoln Park First Reformed Church of Pompton Plains

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Florham Park Grace Episcopal Church, Madison

Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church, Pequannock Jewish Congregation of Kinnelon

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Morristown Lake Hopatcong United Methodist Church

Long Hill Chapel, Chatham Meyersville Presbyterian Church, Gillette Morristown Jewish Center-Beit Yisrael

Morristown Unitarian Fellowship Ogden Memorial Presbyterian Church, Chatham Our Lady of the Magnificat Roman Catholic

Church, Kinnelon Our Lady of the Holy Angels Parish, Little Falls Our Lady of the Lake, Mount Arlington Our Lady of the Valley, Wayne

Host Congregations Bethel AME Church, Morristown

Bethlehem Church, Randolph

Chatham United Methodist Church, Chatham

Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church,

Chatham

First Baptist Community Church, Parsippany

Hillside Lutheran Brethren, Succasunna

Mendham Hills Community Church, Mendham

Morristown United Methodist Church,

Morristown

Our Lady Star of the Sea, Lake Hopatcong

Presbyterian Church of Chatham Township

Presbyterian Church of New Providence

Redeemer Lutheran Church, Succasunna

St. Vincent the Martyr Church, Madison

Shrine of St. Joseph, Stirling

Stanley Congregational Church, Chatham

Temple Shalom Reform, Succasunna

Support Congregations All Saints Episcopal Church, Millington Assumption Church, Morristown Budd Lake Union Chapel

Butler United Methodist Church

Calvary Baptist Church, Morristown Calvary Presbyterian Church, Florham Park

Chatham Summit Quaker Meeting, Chatham Church of Christ the King, New Vernon

2012 Partner Congregations Participating congregations partner with us to ensure our families most basic needs are met. Host congregations use their facilities to

shelter families. Support congregations provide meals and offer fellowship to families.

Formerly Interfaith Council for Homeless Families of Morris County

www.familypromisemorris.org

Our Savior Lutheran Church, Stanhope

Port Morris United Methodist Church, Landing St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church, Parsippany

St. David's Episcopal Church, Kinnelon St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church, Parsippany

St. Joseph’s of Lincoln Park Church, Lincoln Park St. Jude Roman Catholic Church, Hopatcong St. Lawrence Roman Catholic Church, Chester

St. Mark Lutheran Church, Morristown

St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church, Pompton Lakes St. Matthew the Apostle Parish, Randolph St. Michael’s Parish, Netcong

St. Patrick Parish, Chatham St. Peter the Apostle Church, Parsippany St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Morristown

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Mountain Lakes St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Mount Arlington St. Thomas More Church, Convent Station

St. Vincent de Paul Church, Stirling St. Virgil Roman Catholic Parish, Morris Plains Second Reformed Church, Little Falls

Temple Beth Hatikvah, Roxbury Temple B’Nai Or, Morristown The Episcopal Church of St. Paul, Chatham

Trinity Lutheran Church, Dover

Union Baptist Church, Morristown

United Methodist Church of Madison

PO Box 1494 Morristown, New Jersey 07962

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