A Way Forward

Dear Friend,

As we launch this new website, I look back over the past years since the Partnership was founded and how the goodwill, hard work, and generosity of thousands of partners from all across our City and beyond have immeasurably helped us over that time.

And I reflect on the homeless people I’ve met and how their stories and struggles have transformed me. Voices of families with young children, seniors, veterans, and people living with HIV/AIDS, all recounting their personal journey through the fog of homelessness.

I’ve heard stories about how homelessness imposes its own set of disruptions and traumas, burdens that can last over lifetimes. And I’ve seen, first hand, how much preferable it is, by every indicator, to invest preemptively in a society that offers genuine opportunities for each of us to live in economic security and personal wellness and to never know the tragedy of living without a home.

Yet, in spite of our laudable efforts, more persons than ever are without homes, or at risk of losing their homes, in New York City. By some estimates, there are as many New Yorkers without housing today as there were during the Great Depression.

But as you browse through this new website, I hope that you’ll see, as I do, that there is a way forward. That through the work of the Partnership, we can address the many interwoven and preventable factors that put poor families and individuals at risk. And we can do this through ground-tested approaches that prove effective in the long-term.

So please take a moment to explore our new site and let me know what you think – and, perhaps most importantly, how you can help.

Warmly,

Arnold S. Cohen
President