The Friends Blog

When women work together, amazing things happen. 

Christine Wasserstein is a retired psychotherapist and is a member of the national NFP’s Board of Directors. She has long been concerned about the effects of poverty on the emotional health of mothers and babies. 

Susan Orkin shares Christine’s commitment to mothers and babies; she managed programs for vulnerable families for over 35 years and was an administrator for an NFP program in Pennsylvania.

Each of them recognized the power of promoting good outcomes for babies at the earliest moment possible. Spurred on by their mutual interest in the helping professions and NFP, they decided to work together to help mothers and babies in NYC. 

We recently sat down to speak with our founders about the history of Friends of NYC-NFP and its intersection with Women’s History Month. Here’s a brief interview with Susan and Christine:  

How did you meet? 

CW: We met at Citizens’ Committee for Children’s Community Leadership Course in 2014.

SO: In exploring child advocacy organizations, I came across Citizens for Children of New York, which hosts an annual course for individuals interested in learning about key problem areas that confront low income populations and the agencies that address these challenges. Chris was one of the organizers of the course when I signed up. We became friends because of our mutual interest in Nurse Family Partnership.

What made you decide to partner and create Friends of NYC NFP?

SO: I had played a role in managing an NFP program just before I retired from a career managing social service programs. Chris had led me to the Community Advisory Board of NYC NFP and when I got there, I realized they had no mechanism for raising funds from individual donors. I thought that was leaving money on the table and I could do something about it (even though I’d never had fundraising experience and certainly never really thought through what the steps would be. It is good that I didn’t because I would have realized that I had no idea what it would take to be successful). I just figured that I would figure it out and I guess I did.

CW: I am on the national Board of Directors for Nurse-Family Partnership. I was delighted to meet Susan who had worked as an administrator in Pennsylvania for the NFP program there for a number of years. We shared a passion for wanting to help the moms in the NYC program in very tangible ways to become self-sufficient. To that end, we needed to reach out to our friends to fundraise, which required a non-profit status. A partnership was born…

NFP Board and nurses at a pre-pandemic event

What inspires you most about the moms we serve?

SO: I cannot get over the enormity of the struggles so many moms  face and their courage and grit in the face of adversity.

CW: I am inspired by NFP moms’ interest, motivation, and passion to make their lives better for themselves and their children.

How does the work of Friends help women’s empowerment?

SO: So often clients talk about finally “being seen,” “more confident,” “more motivated than ever.” I’m inspired by stories like Camekia’s. Camekia is an NFP client who returned to school despite the adversity she had faced. 

CW: The NFP mothers have pride in themselves for being better parents and supporting their families.

COVID-19 has set women back, according to one report by the National Women’s Law Center, 100% of the jobs lost in December were held by women. How have you seen COVID set women back and how can we recover?

SO: I have seen an enormous difference in how our son participates in raising his children vs my husband (and see it similarly among many couples we know). Yet despite this, the woman is still the backstop, organizer and educator, so yes all women have had an undue burden in this period—both stress and loss of jobs. I don’t know how we recover if corporations and public policy do not change. The child tax credit is an important start and continued pressure from women might help in the workplace but it might take quite a while.

CW: The incredible stress of poverty and child care are overwhelming. Recognition of that burden is being discussed, somewhat, in the media and in various levels of government. We, in the United States as opposed to Europe, are very far behind in the kind of support that families need to thrive. Day Care, nurseries, and community schools are very important.

Moving forward together 

Breaking the cycle of poverty starts with empowering moms to advance their degrees, jumpstart their careers, and become the best moms they can be. We’re grateful to Susan and Christine for leading the way to a better future and recognizing Nurse-Family Partnership’s impact on first-time moms in NYC.

Become an advocate for NYC moms today. Join our community or find out how you can help

While Friends operates a set of important initiatives to assist clients and support nurses every day, we have the flexibility to respond to additional immediate needs. In 2020 this has been, of course, COVID-19. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we served as a crucial stopgap for NFP participants. Many of whom faced food insecurity, job loss, and furlough at greater rates due to the pandemic.

Emergency Fund

We supplied $90,000 worth of VISA gift cards to mothers suffering during the pandemic. We assisted over 400 clients who could not afford critical essentials for their babies (diapers, formula, cribs, etc.) as well as food and critical medications.  Below, we share notes and stories from nurses and clients.

Having aged out of foster care, BL lived in a shelter for over 3 years. Just 3 months into obtaining her own apartment, she caught COVID-19. Because she was required to self-isolate, she lost her job and could not go to Public Assistance to complete a necessary recertification.  She couldn’t afford basic needs for her baby or herself.

AB lost her job in January. To make matters worse, she experienced domestic violence and had to move out in February. Without the financial support that her partner had provided, she cannot pay for baby formula for her child.

Testimonials

From clients:

“My husband and I have an 8-week-old baby girl. He was working but the employer closed and then he got very sick with COVID-19. It has been over a month and he is still showing symptoms and is out of work. I caught the virus two weeks later and our baby is now showing symptoms. We are terrified for her life. This has been one of the worst experiences of our lives, and it has been especially hard to cope with as new parents.”

“As undocumented individuals, we do not qualify for the stimulus check that the government has provided to many Americans. And without social security numbers, we face difficulty finding employment. We have filed our taxes since we were 18 years old, and still we will not receive any relief from the government. We have run out of money; our savings depleted during these last two months in quarantine. We need some help for food, on which we spend around $400.00 a month, and diapers which cost around $100.00 for a month’s supply. There are also our bills for Con-Edison ($150.00), phone ($163.00), cable and internet ($95.00), and of course, rent ($1875.00). We also need funds for my prenatal vitamins ($35.00).  I must purchase them myself because the ones the doctor provided made me sick. I was not working the last two months of my pregnancy, but plan to go back to work when my baby turns six months old. D plans to go back as soon as there is an employment opportunity and the virus symptoms go away. Marisol, our nurse home-visitor, told us about the Heart’s Desire Emergency Response program and we would greatly appreciate it if you could help us in any way. Like many others, we are very uncertain about our future.”

“I want to say THANK YOU so much from the bottom of my heart for the gift card. It will go for essentials that I could not afford for my baby girl Joy. It is hard during this crazy time when my husband and I have both lost our jobs and when businesses are hiking up their prices. Words cannot describe my appreciation for this gift. It may not seem like a lot to some but to me this goes a long way and because of you my baby will be able to get the things she needs. Both my daughter and I are blessed to be a part of this AMAZING program.”

From nurse supervisors:

“The COVID-19 emergency has in no small way impacted our client’s lives, many have lost their jobs, while in some households, both clients and their significant others have been furloughed leaving already overwhelmed grandparents to provide financial support from limited resources. Thank you as you continue to provide avenues to our clients to meet emergency needs–including everything from diapers and food to medications and phone minutes–and your ongoing program to support their heart’s desires for better education and self-sufficiency. Our clients are overlooked by so many of the common social service programs.”

“You all are lifesavers! This pandemic has hit NYC really hard – our clients are experiencing delayed unemployment checks or stimulus payments, some clients are undocumented and can’t file for unemployment and most have no paid sick leave. Although there are food banks, and we certainly direct clients to them, they may be distant, have long lines, have limited supplies and are inaccessible to those who are sick.”

From nurses:

“I heard from a client yesterday who said that the emergency funds enabled her to buy lancets so she could test her blood sugar (she has diabetes). She normally makes money waiting tables and bartending. She is very resourceful, but I know that the extra money was not only critical for her health but relieved her budgetary stress.”

“One of my clients is 23 weeks pregnant, at risk for preterm labor, and will now be able to take an Uber to the hospital instead of walking.  She had been advised not to walk as it triggers contractions, but until now she had no other transportation option. It’s a small mercy but it means a lot to our clients who are struggling right now.”