Vernon Isaac, SCFH assistant cook, prepares lunch for the staff.
Story and photos by Ted Waddell
SULLIVAN COUNTY – It’s a tough job trying to break the cycle of poverty, but the folks at the Sullivan County Federation for the Homeless (SCFH) are attempting to help the ever increasing number of homeless in our economically stressed rural community with an estimated year round full time population of approximately 75,000 people.
According to the mission their statement, “The Sullivan County Federation for the Homeless is committed to developing individualized and community
wide plans for disadvantaged people to break the cycles of poverty that cause indigent people to be homeless and hungry. To this end, we will provide education to consumers, goods, and services to those who are without resources.”
Steve White, SCFH program administrator was the head tennis pro at the Concord Hotel for 25 years ago before the once proud Catskills resort fell on hard times and closed.
Steve White, SCFH program administrator, talks to a homeless client on the phone.
About ten years ago, he started volunteering at the federation, then joined the board of directors, was later elected chairman, and then took over as director last year.
“I always wanted to do something to help in the county,” said White. “There has to be something more than just yourself.”
“Yes, there are people who take advantage of the system, but sometimes luck just doesn’t go your way, and there’s got to be someone there to help in the community and society you live in.”
In addition to White, the SCFH staff includes Esther Tyler (program coordinator) and Luis Rodriguez (cook).
The board of directors: Sam Wohl (chair), Cesar Loarca, L.C.S.W. (vice-chairperson), James Lyttle (treasurer), Rhetta Eason (secretary) and Frank McGreevy, Carl Silverstein, Kathy LaBuda, Father I. Smith, Ida Crawford, Betsy Smith and Norty Hyman.
According to White, the SCFH gets by with assistance from several annual funding sources: approximately $125,000 from the NYS Homeless Housing and Assistance Program (HHAP) which provides money for the soup kitchen; about $74,000 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) Program; and another $14,000-$15,000 from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“With the FEMA money, anyone can walk in and if we deem them eligible, we help them with a month’s rent or a heating bill to keep them in their place and warm,” said White.
Details of the mural painted on the SCFH building by an inmate at a local correctional facility.
Without a ‘little help from their friends’ White said the SCFH wouldn’t be able to survive: Marty and Ellen Bresky of Murray’s Chickens, producers of free ranging and drug free chickens “the federation and the people of Sullivan County owe them an incredible debt”, Walmart got on board three months ago to donate left-over food, Shoprite “has been giving us bread and pastries for years”, and the concessionaire at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts “after a concert, they call us and we go over and pick up” what’s left after the music plays.
“Without that help we wouldn’t make it,” said White.
In explaining the scope of the area’s homeless situation, White said the numbers of homeless and at-risk of homelessness “have always gone up, but in the last couple of years it has increased dramatically…the lack of jobs, the squeeze on working people, and oil and gas prices have gone through the roof.”
“There are no jobs here, and the economic conditions being what they are, the rest of the country has caught up to Sullivan County.”
The SCFH is located in what used to be the old Jewish Community Center, then the Foothills Youth Recreation Center that Harry Rhulen gave to the village.
The SCFH recently submitted a $1.5 million grant proposal to convert part of the building into a shelter for homeless single women and homeless mothers and their kids in an effort to get them into a safe and structured living environment and out of expensive, yet mostly deplorable rented rooms funded by local tax dollars.
Services Provided by the SCFH
The federation’s soup kitchen provides a hot nutritious meal for more than 100 people every day Monday-Friday and distributes about 140 pantry bags of food per week.
Last year (April 2008-April 2009), the federation served over 34,000 meals and distributed more than 6,000 pantry bags (48,000 individual meals) to those in need in our economically hard-pressed community. There are no eligibility requirements to eat at the soup kitchen.
To be eligible for a food pantry, folks must have incomes that do not exceed 185% of the poverty lever, proof of household size, and proof of income.
- The SCFH soup kitchen provides a hot/cold breakfast Monday-Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.; hot lunches Monday-Friday from 12 noon to 1:00 p.m.; a food pantry every Friday; an emergency food pantry 24/7; and a clothing pantry.
- For the homeless, the SCFH offers assistance with locating housing, tenants rights information, information and referrals, networking with other social services agencies, advocacy of behalf of clients, tips for renters, and assistance with managing a budget.
- The SCFH provides emergency rental and utility payments as well as short-term case management to people living with HIV/AIDS. An eligible person could receive up to five months of emergency payments annually in any combination of rental or utility assistance, but they must provide proof of their HIV/AIDS status, proof of household size, proof of income, and proof of residence (additional information may be required).
- The federation’s holiday events include the Annual Doug Miller Thanksgiving Day Dinner, Christmas Eve Dinner, and Easter Sunday Brunch.
How to Contact the SCFH
Office hours at the SCFH. located at 9 Monticello Street are Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Emergency food pantry services are available 24/7, call 845-798-8774. For more information about services offered by the federation, call 845-794-2604, FAX 845-794-3620 or email SCFH@hvc.rr.com
To view more photos from Homeless in the Land of Plenty – Part VII visit the Chronicle on Zenfolio.
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The Catskill Chronicle 
Homeless in the Land of Plenty: Part VII
January 13, 2010 by The Catskill Chronicle
Vernon Isaac, SCFH assistant cook, prepares lunch for the staff.
Story and photos by Ted Waddell
SULLIVAN COUNTY – It’s a tough job trying to break the cycle of poverty, but the folks at the Sullivan County Federation for the Homeless (SCFH) are attempting to help the ever increasing number of homeless in our economically stressed rural community with an estimated year round full time population of approximately 75,000 people.
According to the mission their statement, “The Sullivan County Federation for the Homeless is committed to developing individualized and community
wide plans for disadvantaged people to break the cycles of poverty that cause indigent people to be homeless and hungry. To this end, we will provide education to consumers, goods, and services to those who are without resources.”
Steve White, SCFH program administrator was the head tennis pro at the Concord Hotel for 25 years ago before the once proud Catskills resort fell on hard times and closed.
Steve White, SCFH program administrator, talks to a homeless client on the phone.
About ten years ago, he started volunteering at the federation, then joined the board of directors, was later elected chairman, and then took over as director last year.
“I always wanted to do something to help in the county,” said White. “There has to be something more than just yourself.”
“Yes, there are people who take advantage of the system, but sometimes luck just doesn’t go your way, and there’s got to be someone there to help in the community and society you live in.”
In addition to White, the SCFH staff includes Esther Tyler (program coordinator) and Luis Rodriguez (cook).
The board of directors: Sam Wohl (chair), Cesar Loarca, L.C.S.W. (vice-chairperson), James Lyttle (treasurer), Rhetta Eason (secretary) and Frank McGreevy, Carl Silverstein, Kathy LaBuda, Father I. Smith, Ida Crawford, Betsy Smith and Norty Hyman.
According to White, the SCFH gets by with assistance from several annual funding sources: approximately $125,000 from the NYS Homeless Housing and Assistance Program (HHAP) which provides money for the soup kitchen; about $74,000 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) Program; and another $14,000-$15,000 from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“With the FEMA money, anyone can walk in and if we deem them eligible, we help them with a month’s rent or a heating bill to keep them in their place and warm,” said White.
Details of the mural painted on the SCFH building by an inmate at a local correctional facility.
Without a ‘little help from their friends’ White said the SCFH wouldn’t be able to survive: Marty and Ellen Bresky of Murray’s Chickens, producers of free ranging and drug free chickens “the federation and the people of Sullivan County owe them an incredible debt”, Walmart got on board three months ago to donate left-over food, Shoprite “has been giving us bread and pastries for years”, and the concessionaire at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts “after a concert, they call us and we go over and pick up” what’s left after the music plays.
“Without that help we wouldn’t make it,” said White.
In explaining the scope of the area’s homeless situation, White said the numbers of homeless and at-risk of homelessness “have always gone up, but in the last couple of years it has increased dramatically…the lack of jobs, the squeeze on working people, and oil and gas prices have gone through the roof.”
“There are no jobs here, and the economic conditions being what they are, the rest of the country has caught up to Sullivan County.”
The SCFH is located in what used to be the old Jewish Community Center, then the Foothills Youth Recreation Center that Harry Rhulen gave to the village.
The SCFH recently submitted a $1.5 million grant proposal to convert part of the building into a shelter for homeless single women and homeless mothers and their kids in an effort to get them into a safe and structured living environment and out of expensive, yet mostly deplorable rented rooms funded by local tax dollars.
Services Provided by the SCFH
The federation’s soup kitchen provides a hot nutritious meal for more than 100 people every day Monday-Friday and distributes about 140 pantry bags of food per week.
Last year (April 2008-April 2009), the federation served over 34,000 meals and distributed more than 6,000 pantry bags (48,000 individual meals) to those in need in our economically hard-pressed community. There are no eligibility requirements to eat at the soup kitchen.
To be eligible for a food pantry, folks must have incomes that do not exceed 185% of the poverty lever, proof of household size, and proof of income.
How to Contact the SCFH
Office hours at the SCFH. located at 9 Monticello Street are Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Emergency food pantry services are available 24/7, call 845-798-8774. For more information about services offered by the federation, call 845-794-2604, FAX 845-794-3620 or email SCFH@hvc.rr.com
To view more photos from Homeless in the Land of Plenty – Part VII visit the Chronicle on Zenfolio.
Click any service in this box to share this post with your friends!
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