We caught up with Andrea Cimino––known to all as Drea––about her work with JCCA's Westchester Day Treatment program and supporting LGBTQ clients. How did you find yourself in this field? Life hasn’t always been kind. Like many of the youth I work with, I’ve had my own...
On Saturday, JCCA’s East Flatbush Community Partnership hosted its fourth annual “What’s Next 4 Her: Brooklyn Women’s Summit.” The yearly event brought together women from across New York City for empowering workshops and discussions at the BKLYN Commons Coworking...
The arrival of late spring means it’s time for one of the most beloved traditions on JCCA’s Pleasantville campus, the annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner. The campus is blessed by a uniquely robust and committed volunteer community. Over 800 volunteers visit every...
Ed Hajim’s life did not get off to an auspicious start. Born into the Depression, kidnapped by his father at age three and told (falsely) that his mother was dead, Hajim lived in more than 15 foster homes and residential facilities before he reached age 18. When...
Dear JCCA Community, On Mother's Day this year, I find myself reflecting on the incredible tapestry of motherhood I’ve witnessed in my own life and in the JCCA community. From birth mothers to foster moms, grandmothers to aunties and beyond, all play a vital role in...
It’s National Nurses Week, so it’s only fitting that we shine a light on our phenomenal nursing team. At JCCA we like to say that Heroes Work Here, and no team embodies that truth more than our nurses, who go above and beyond in countless ways to offer hope and care...
Tuesday’s gala was a joy––and a great success. A sell-out crowd of over 350 people filled the ballroom of Mandarin Oriental, featuring an unbeatable view of Central Park, raising nearly $1 million and counting to support the young people in JCCA’s care. The warmth and...
Note: reprinted with permission from Children's Voice magazine, Volume 33, Number 1 The current crisis affecting mental health among young people has been widely reported, and the data are stark. The CDC reports mental health–related emergency room visits among teens...
I had a difficult adolescence and by the time I reached adulthood I was deeply addicted to drugs. I lost a son to medical complications as a result. Thankfully my other children were born healthy, but I continued to use all the same. While pregnant with my youngest...
We caught up with Leonard Leveille, Director of JCCA’s Helping Hands for Families program, to learn more about his unexpected career in social work. Where does your professional story begin? I grew up in Brooklyn, in a family of hardworking Haitian immigrants who...