"Six months from today there will be grief, there will be higher unemployment, there will be an increase in domestic violence and substance abuse...

You will discover that we grieve differently, we seek help differently. We are a community in crisis."

Ruddel Deceus, "18 Mai" Committee, Inc., January 22, 2010

The NYC Haitian Community Hope & Healing Fund was established by the Brooklyn Community Foundation and the United Way of NYC to address the short and long-term needs of individuals, families and communities in the New York City area affected by the January 12, 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The Fund provides financial support and critical resources to local nonprofit organizations that are attuned to the needs of their neighborhoods; it focuses on strengthening these organizations so that they can most effectively serve the anticipated increased number of people who need assistance with immigration, grief and trauma, job training, housing, English language acquisition and more over the coming months and years.

More About the Fund: 

New York City is home to one of the largest Haitian communities outside of Haiti – more than 130,000 individuals – the vast majority of whom live in Brooklyn and Queens.  As we continue to learn of the hundreds of thousands of people killed, injured and displaced as a result of the earthquake that devastated Port au Prince on January 12, 2010, it is apparent that the impact of this catastrophe extends well beyond Haiti’s shores, penetrating into one or our City’s most vibrant and under-resourced communities.  Addressing the immediate and long-term needs of New York City’s Haitian communities will be an immense task.

The Brooklyn Community Foundation and United Way of New York City established the NYC Haitian Community Hope & Healing Fund to address the short and long-needs of individuals, families and communities in the New York City area affected by the earthquake in Haiti.  The Fund provides financial support and critical resources to local nonprofit organizations that are attuned to the needs of their neighborhoods; it focuses on strengthening these organizations so that they can most effectively serve the anticipated increased number of people who need assistance with immigration, grief and trauma, job training, housing, English language acquisition and more over the coming months and years.

The Hope & Healing Fund supports:

• Case Management: Culturally competent staff who will connect those affected with existing resources and help address issues such as immigration, housing, financial assistance, public benefits, counseling, job training and placement
• Legal Services: Legal services to assist Haitians seeking to secure Temporary Protective Status in the United States and to coordinate and expand existing immigration/legal services throughout the community
• Healing: Individual and group counseling as well as creative, community-based responses that unify  and encourage expression of grief, and offer positive, supportive environments for both adults and young people as they grieve and heal
• Education:  Language and enrichment programs for young adults so they have a better opportunity for future success, as well as English language acquisition programs for adults seeking employment and adjusting to life in the U.S.

More:

• Press release announcing Hope and Healing Fund grant recipients in 2010.
• Report of the first year