New York City issues a Code Blue Weather Emergency when the temperature drops to 32°For less between 4pm and 8am. Should you see a homeless individual out in the cold, please call 311 and an outreach team will be dispatched to offer assistance. Learn more here.
Some of the best stories that come out of BronxWorks are of our staff who have grown with our programs but have also contributed to our growth through their years of providing services in our communities. Maria Rivera, who has worked in our Services for Older Adults Department for almost as long as we have had the department, is one of these stories.
Maria was born and raised in Manhattan, her parents having immigrated to New York City from Chile. Maria credits her love of serving people from her childhood, growing up in and around restaurants. Her father was a chef, as is her brother.
That is why I am so in tuned with food. It’s one of things I like to do most, feed people breakfast and lunch.”
Maria earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology and Psychology from Lehman College, and her Master’s in Social Work from Hunter College. She worked for Project SOS providing case work for homebound elderly and oversaw the Older Adults Luncheon Club at a senior center on 183rd Street. When the Older Adults Luncheon Club eventually closed, BronxWorks took it over and hired Maria to help transition the program to the Morris Senior Center.
Over 22 years at BronxWorks, Maria has supported the expansion of the Senior Services Department. She became Department Director in 2008 and has seen the department grow to include four Older Adult Centers; a Senior Housing Assistance Program (SHAP); a Senior Housing Improvement Program (SHIP) two Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCS), Elder Abuse Prevention, Geriatric Mental Health services, and other supportive programs and satellite offices for seniors. This year, Maria helped BronxWorks expand the department, adding three new Senior Centers at the Carolyn McLaughlin Community Center, Soundview Senior Housing, and Twin Parks West
Older Adult Centers are so important for our communities. It gives our participants a place to go, to see their friends, and is so important for their mental health.”
Maria says that working with older adults became her calling when she saw how older adults are treated in society and how many of them live in isolation. She said the biggest challenge for her and staff throughout this pandemic is not seeing the participants day to day. To address the isolation for her participants, the department immediately conducted wellness checks with each participant every single day. They transitioned to virtual classes and activities until they were finally able to hold in-person activities on a limited basis.
Still, she says, its not like it used to be. They cannot hold parties or organize trips yet, which many of the participants are eager to resume. Despite the challenges, Maria is encouraged by the dedication that her staff has shown to providing services for older adults and is hopeful to resume all of the programming with participants in the future.
Outside of work, Maria is all about her family, and spending time FaceTiming with her grandson. She loves to dance and travel, but these days she spends most of her time making improvements to her house.
Some of the best stories that come out of BronxWorks are of our staff who have grown with our programs but have also contributed to our growth through their years of providing services in our communities. Maria Rivera, who has worked in our Services for Older Adults Department for almost as long as we have had the department, is one of these stories.
Maria was born and raised in Manhattan, her parents having immigrated to New York City from Chile. Maria credits her love of serving people from her childhood, growing up in and around restaurants. Her father was a chef, as is her brother.
That is why I am so in tuned with food. It’s one of things I like to do most, feed people breakfast and lunch.”
Maria earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology and Psychology from Lehman College, and her Master’s in Social Work from Hunter College. She worked for Project SOS providing case work for homebound elderly and oversaw the Older Adults Luncheon Club at a senior center on 183rd Street. When the Older Adults Luncheon Club eventually closed, BronxWorks took it over and hired Maria to help transition the program to the Morris Senior Center.
Over 22 years at BronxWorks, Maria has supported the expansion of the Senior Services Department. She became Department Director in 2008 and has seen the department grow to include four Older Adult Centers; a Senior Housing Assistance Program (SHAP); a Senior Housing Improvement Program (SHIP) two Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCS), Elder Abuse Prevention, Geriatric Mental Health services, and other supportive programs and satellite offices for seniors. This year, Maria helped BronxWorks expand the department, adding three new Senior Centers at the Carolyn McLaughlin Community Center, Soundview Senior Housing, and Twin Parks West
Older Adult Centers are so important for our communities. It gives our participants a place to go, to see their friends, and is so important for their mental health.”
Maria says that working with older adults became her calling when she saw how older adults are treated in society and how many of them live in isolation. She said the biggest challenge for her and staff throughout this pandemic is not seeing the participants day to day. To address the isolation for her participants, the department immediately conducted wellness checks with each participant every single day. They transitioned to virtual classes and activities until they were finally able to hold in-person activities on a limited basis.
Still, she says, its not like it used to be. They cannot hold parties or organize trips yet, which many of the participants are eager to resume. Despite the challenges, Maria is encouraged by the dedication that her staff has shown to providing services for older adults and is hopeful to resume all of the programming with participants in the future.
Outside of work, Maria is all about her family, and spending time FaceTiming with her grandson. She loves to dance and travel, but these days she spends most of her time making improvements to her house.
The 2021 holiday season confirmed our belief that our supporters are as determined as we are to ensure that all of our participants had something to make their celebrations special. It was another challenging season due to the Omicron variant and increasing COVID cases, as well as supply-chain issues and other economic hardships–not where we hoped to be two years into the pandemic. However, as we have done over these two years and in years prior to the pandemic, we partnered with our supporters to help us provide some joy and holiday spirit for the families and households that need it most, and so many came through for us in a huge way.
Immaculate Conception School Donated Holiday Gifts For Families And Students
As they did in 2020, Immaculate Conception School in Tuckahoe, NY brought holiday joy by the truckload with gifts for our families. The donations included gifts for babies, school-age children, adults, and holiday decorations for families who moved into permanent housing. Students also hand-made cards and included them as a special token to our participants. Thank you to all of the faculty, parents, and students at Immaculate Conception for your generosity!
Overtime Larry Collected Coats, Shoes, and Warm Clothes for our Cornerstone Community
Content Creator and internet host @OvertimeLarry summoned his 300k+ followers to collect over 30 bags of coats, shoes, and winter clothing for BronxWorks participants at the St. Mary’s Cornerstone Community Center and surrounding community. He and his team joined BronxWorks to hand the clothing out this month. Thank you, Overtime Larry and all of your followers, for making this happen!
FDNY Hispanic Society Celebrates Three Kings Day with BronxWorks Families and Children
The FDNY Hispanic Society celebrated Three Kings Day with a huge gift giveaway event for BronxWorks families and children. Participants were able to meet with a team of firefighters in full uniform, take pictures with FDNY mascots, meet a K-9 unit, and pick out an armful of gifts donated by the FDNY Hispanic Society. Such an amazing and exciting day for our children and families. Thank you, FDNY Hispanic Society, for bringing joy to our community!
Holiday Wishes from Linklaters and USI
This year, both Linklaters and USI supported a holiday wishes drive for students at the Jill Chafetz Transfer School. JCTS is a public high school designed for older students aged 16 to 21 who have fallen behind academically. BronxWorks and school staff work with students to create individual academic plans to put them back on track to graduate with a high school diploma. For their holiday wishes, JCTS students were asked to share an act of kindness that they performed over the past year and to indicate something they wished for themselves. Many of our students asked for gifts for their families or for younger siblings. Linklaters and USI organized gift drives to fulfill the wishes of every student.
Turner Construction Company Sponsors Holiday Food Pantry
Once again, Turner Construction Company sponsored a special holiday food pantry at the Carolyn McLaughlin Community Center. As a long-time supported of the BronxWorks Community Food Pantry, Turner donated special holiday food items, like pork shoulders, to bring some extra joy to our families and participants. Volunteers from Turner Construction also helped prepare and set up the pantry. Thank you Turner for your support year after year, especially during the holiday season!
Capitolis Throws a Holiday Party for Our Early Childhood Learning Center
Capitolis and long-time BronxWorks supporter Jordan Hamowy treated children and families from our Early Childhood Learning Centers to a holiday party where they could come together to celebrate. Participants received refreshments and a gift and enjoyed holiday-themed crafts and activities. Thank you to Jordan and Capitolis for your generosity. Our families were overjoyed to celebrate the holidays together.
Leadership Council, Old Maroon Rugby Football Club, and All of Our Other Supporters
The outpouring of donations and gift drives this holiday season was unbelievable! From long-time supporters to new connections, each gift helped to make the holidays so much brighter for our participants. The BronxWorks Leadership Council sponsored a holiday gift drive for middle school students. Old Maroon Rugby Football Club donated bags of gifts and gift cards to support the drive. Other supporters include World Vision, Sirrus Fund, United Neighborhood Houses, and the hundreds of individuals who purchased items from our Amazon and Target wishlists this season. On behalf of all of our participants, thank you!
The 2021 holiday season confirmed our belief that our supporters are as determined as we are to ensure that all of our participants had something to make their celebrations special. It was another challenging season due to the Omicron variant and increasing COVID cases, as well as supply-chain issues and other economic hardships–not where we hoped to be two years into the pandemic. However, as we have done over these two years and in years prior to the pandemic, we partnered with our supporters to help us provide some joy and holiday spirit for the families and households that need it most, and so many came through for us in a huge way.
Immaculate Conception School Donated Holiday Gifts For Families And Students
As they did in 2020, Immaculate Conception School in Tuckahoe, NY brought holiday joy by the truckload with gifts for our families. The donations included gifts for babies, school-age children, adults, and holiday decorations for families who moved into permanent housing. Students also hand-made cards and included them as a special token to our participants. Thank you to all of the faculty, parents, and students at Immaculate Conception for your generosity!
Overtime Larry Collected Coats, Shoes, and Warm Clothes for our Cornerstone Community
Content Creator and internet host @OvertimeLarry summoned his 300k+ followers to collect over 30 bags of coats, shoes, and winter clothing for BronxWorks participants at the St. Mary’s Cornerstone Community Center and surrounding community. He and his team joined BronxWorks to hand the clothing out this month. Thank you, Overtime Larry and all of your followers, for making this happen!
FDNY Hispanic Society Celebrates Three Kings Day with BronxWorks Families and Children
The FDNY Hispanic Society celebrated Three Kings Day with a huge gift giveaway event for BronxWorks families and children. Participants were able to meet with a team of firefighters in full uniform, take pictures with FDNY mascots, meet a K-9 unit, and pick out an armful of gifts donated by the FDNY Hispanic Society. Such an amazing and exciting day for our children and families. Thank you, FDNY Hispanic Society, for bringing joy to our community!
Holiday Wishes from Linklaters and USI
This year, both Linklaters and USI supported a holiday wishes drive for students at the Jill Chafetz Transfer School. JCTS is a public high school designed for older students aged 16 to 21 who have fallen behind academically. BronxWorks and school staff work with students to create individual academic plans to put them back on track to graduate with a high school diploma. For their holiday wishes, JCTS students were asked to share an act of kindness that they performed over the past year and to indicate something they wished for themselves. Many of our students asked for gifts for their families or for younger siblings. Linklaters and USI organized gift drives to fulfill the wishes of every student.
Turner Construction Company Sponsors Holiday Food Pantry
Once again, Turner Construction Company sponsored a special holiday food pantry at the Carolyn McLaughlin Community Center. As a long-time supported of the BronxWorks Community Food Pantry, Turner donated special holiday food items, like pork shoulders, to bring some extra joy to our families and participants. Volunteers from Turner Construction also helped prepare and set up the pantry. Thank you Turner for your support year after year, especially during the holiday season!
Capitolis Throws a Holiday Party for Our Early Childhood Learning Center
Capitolis and long-time BronxWorks supporter Jordan Hamowy treated children and families from our Early Childhood Learning Centers to a holiday party where they could come together to celebrate. Participants received refreshments and a gift and enjoyed holiday-themed crafts and activities. Thank you to Jordan and Capitolis for your generosity. Our families were overjoyed to celebrate the holidays together.
Leadership Council, Old Maroon Rugby Football Club, and All of Our Other Supporters
The outpouring of donations and gift drives this holiday season was unbelievable! From long-time supporters to new connections, each gift helped to make the holidays so much brighter for our participants. The BronxWorks Leadership Council sponsored a holiday gift drive for middle school students. Old Maroon Rugby Football Club donated bags of gifts and gift cards to support the drive. Other supporters include World Vision, Sirrus Fund, United Neighborhood Houses, and the hundreds of individuals who purchased items from our Amazon and Target wishlists this season. On behalf of all of our participants, thank you!
On January 9, 17 lives were lost and many other lives were heavily impacted by a horrific fire at 333 West 181st Street. Like always, the Bronx community came together and supported their neighbors in any way possible. These families will continue to need help as they rebuild their lives.
BronxWorks is working alongside the mayor’s team as well as city and state agencies to assess ongoing needs for the victims and families.
To learn about even more of the work being done across New York City to help the victims, click here.
On January 9, 17 lives were lost and many other lives were heavily impacted by a horrific fire at 333 West 181st Street. Like always, the Bronx community came together and supported their neighbors in any way possible. These families will continue to need help as they rebuild their lives.
BronxWorks is working alongside the mayor’s team as well as city and state agencies to assess ongoing needs for the victims and families.
