Maribel is a lifelong New York City resident, having spent most of her time in the Bronx. After getting injured on the job, Maribel is no longer able to work. “Before I got hurt, I was much stronger, and now, because of my injury, I can’t exercise.” In May 2022, Maribel was diagnosed with diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. With her diagnosis, it became crucial for Maribel to eat healthy foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. “With the supermarkets…the prices are so high. How am I supposed to stay healthy and lose weight when I can’t afford to buy healthy food?”

This past summer, Maribel’s friend told her about the BronxWorks Community Food Pantry. She started coming to the pantry to help supplement her groceries with healthy food options. “I need fresh produce because the canned products are so salty and I have to be careful with salt,” Maribel says. “They give me vegetables, fish, things I can’t afford at the supermarket.” Maribel’s story is common to many Bronx residents facing a lack of resources to improve their health outcomes.

For many years, including through the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, BronxWorks has added programs to address food insecurity. In addition to the Community Food Pantry, BronxWorks Older Adult Centers offer regular grab and go pantries, and every summer and fall BronxWorks operates two Farm Stands selling fresh produce at reasonable prices. For Maribel, the Community Food Pantry has become a crucial part of her health intervention. “It’s a lifeline for me,” she says.

The BronxWorks Emergency Fund can assist Bronx individuals like Maribel with extra resources to ensure they can live and lead healthy lives.

Maribel is a lifelong New York City resident, having spent most of her time in the Bronx. After getting injured on the job, Maribel is no longer able to work. “Before I got hurt, I was much stronger, and now, because of my injury, I can’t exercise.” In May 2022, Maribel was diagnosed with diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. With her diagnosis, it became crucial for Maribel to eat healthy foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. “With the supermarkets…the prices are so high. How am I supposed to stay healthy and lose weight when I can’t afford to buy healthy food?”

This past summer, Maribel’s friend told her about the BronxWorks Community Food Pantry. She started coming to the pantry to help supplement her groceries with healthy food options. “I need fresh produce because the canned products are so salty and I have to be careful with salt,” Maribel says. “They give me vegetables, fish, things I can’t afford at the supermarket.” Maribel’s story is common to many Bronx residents facing a lack of resources to improve their health outcomes.

For many years, including through the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, BronxWorks has added programs to address food insecurity. In addition to the Community Food Pantry, BronxWorks Older Adult Centers offer regular grab and go pantries, and every summer and fall BronxWorks operates two Farm Stands selling fresh produce at reasonable prices. For Maribel, the Community Food Pantry has become a crucial part of her health intervention. “It’s a lifeline for me,” she says.

The BronxWorks Emergency Fund can assist Bronx individuals like Maribel with extra resources to ensure they can live and lead healthy lives.

Kalif, 25, is an older brother, and he takes that job seriously. “Being a big brother, I’m not his father, but I’m probably the first person he will go to. I took that as a responsibility; my little brother pushes me to be a better person.” During his senior year of high school, Kalif and his family had to move away from a bad situation, forcing him to drop out of school. After settling in his new home, Kalif enrolled in a GED program and passed the GED test within a year, earning his high school-equivalency diploma while still at age 18.

Kalif has always seen himself as a caretaker not only for his brother but his retired parents as well. With his GED in hand, he pursued work opportunities to better financially support his family. In 2021, after struggling to find work, he connected with BronxWorks Jobs Plus. “I saw the free security guard license course, came in, took that course, got my certification, and I haven’t looked back,” he says. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the issuance of his license, but Kalif pushed forward and excitedly accepted a position with a local security firm. “The financial barrier to getting the license is something I would not have been able to cross if it weren’t for the service the BronxWorks Jobs Plus program provided to me,” he says. He now works as a security guard in various entertainment venues across the City.

Working security was never something Kalif had thought he would be doing. Now that he’s chosen this path, Kalif feels the sky is the limit. “I really like doing this work. I like talking to people,” he says. “I want to maybe work my way up to being a fire safety director or a personal bodyguard.” BronxWorks Workforce Development is still working with Kalif nearly two years later, connecting him with a mentor for advice and guidance on how he can achieve his career goals.

“I always feel safe at BronxWorks,” he says. “No matter what I need, the staff is here to support me. I feel like there is a real family atmosphere here.” Kalif’s hard work, persistence, and ability to focus on building a financially stable future has allowed him to overcome years of adversity. “My brother is proud of me,” he says with a big smile. “He’s finishing high school now and is looking forward to his next steps.”

The BronxWorks Emergency Fund will help provide Bronx individuals like Kalif important connections and skills to provide for their families and build a better future.

Kalif, 25, is an older brother, and he takes that job seriously. “Being a big brother, I’m not his father, but I’m probably the first person he will go to. I took that as a responsibility; my little brother pushes me to be a better person.” During his senior year of high school, Kalif and his family had to move away from a bad situation, forcing him to drop out of school. After settling in his new home, Kalif enrolled in a GED program and passed the GED test within a year, earning his high school-equivalency diploma while still at age 18.

Kalif has always seen himself as a caretaker not only for his brother but his retired parents as well. With his GED in hand, he pursued work opportunities to better financially support his family. In 2021, after struggling to find work, he connected with BronxWorks Jobs Plus. “I saw the free security guard license course, came in, took that course, got my certification, and I haven’t looked back,” he says. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the issuance of his license, but Kalif pushed forward and excitedly accepted a position with a local security firm. “The financial barrier to getting the license is something I would not have been able to cross if it weren’t for the service the BronxWorks Jobs Plus program provided to me,” he says. He now works as a security guard in various entertainment venues across the City.

Working security was never something Kalif had thought he would be doing. Now that he’s chosen this path, Kalif feels the sky is the limit. “I really like doing this work. I like talking to people,” he says. “I want to maybe work my way up to being a fire safety director or a personal bodyguard.” BronxWorks Workforce Development is still working with Kalif nearly two years later, connecting him with a mentor for advice and guidance on how he can achieve his career goals.

“I always feel safe at BronxWorks,” he says. “No matter what I need, the staff is here to support me. I feel like there is a real family atmosphere here.” Kalif’s hard work, persistence, and ability to focus on building a financially stable future has allowed him to overcome years of adversity. “My brother is proud of me,” he says with a big smile. “He’s finishing high school now and is looking forward to his next steps.”

The BronxWorks Emergency Fund will help provide Bronx individuals like Kalif important connections and skills to provide for their families and build a better future.

Since the spring, BronxWorks has received dozens of migrant families at our three homeless family residences. Over 70 families are housed between these residences. Additionally, in September, BronxWorks opened a new 90-unit Family Hotel to help shelter a wave of newly-arriving families, like Roberto and Claudia and their young daughter, who escaped from persecution in Venezuela earlier to pursue a safer life here in the U.S. Within days the facility was housing over 300 people, including over 100 children.

Our work with these families will continue for some time as we help them put together their lives in a very new setting, navigate the systems that are in place for them, learn a brand new language, enroll their children in school, and so much more.”

~Eileen Torres, Executive Director of BronxWorks.

For the staff at the BronxWorks Family Hotel, it has been a lesson in the resilience of people when they are striving for a better future. “A lot of these families arrived with just clothes. Some didn’t have shoes,” says Yevy Bednaya, Residence Director of the BronxWorks Family Hotel, “Despite what they’ve been through, they’re smiling. They’re happy to be here together, to have not been separated, to be in a safe place as a family.”

It has also been a lesson in the generosity of our communities who have rallied to provide what these families need to build a new life. From clothing, to school supplies, to household items, our supporters and partners went the extra mile to help us welcome our new neighbors.

The BronxWorks Emergency Fund allows BronxWorks to respond quickly and provide vital services and programs to children, individuals, and families in need like Roberto, Claudia, and their daughter. Donate to the BronxWorks 2022 Year-End Appeal today!

Since the spring, BronxWorks has received dozens of migrant families at our three homeless family residences. Over 70 families are housed between these residences. Additionally, in September, BronxWorks opened a new 90-unit Family Hotel to help shelter a wave of newly-arriving families, like Roberto and Claudia and their young daughter, who escaped from persecution in Venezuela earlier to pursue a safer life here in the U.S. Within days the facility was housing over 300 people, including over 100 children.

Our work with these families will continue for some time as we help them put together their lives in a very new setting, navigate the systems that are in place for them, learn a brand new language, enroll their children in school, and so much more.”

~Eileen Torres, Executive Director of BronxWorks.

For the staff at the BronxWorks Family Hotel, it has been a lesson in the resilience of people when they are striving for a better future. “A lot of these families arrived with just clothes. Some didn’t have shoes,” says Yevy Bednaya, Residence Director of the BronxWorks Family Hotel, “Despite what they’ve been through, they’re smiling. They’re happy to be here together, to have not been separated, to be in a safe place as a family.”

It has also been a lesson in the generosity of our communities who have rallied to provide what these families need to build a new life. From clothing, to school supplies, to household items, our supporters and partners went the extra mile to help us welcome our new neighbors.

The BronxWorks Emergency Fund allows BronxWorks to respond quickly and provide vital services and programs to children, individuals, and families in need like Roberto, Claudia, and their daughter. Donate to the BronxWorks 2022 Year-End Appeal today!