Bonacic: Human Services Groups From Hudson Valley Receive State Assistance

State Senator John J. Bonacic (R/I/C - Mt. Hope), today announced that six human services organizations from Ulster and Orange Counties will share in $110,000 in State aid the Senator secured as part of the 2005-2006 State Budget.

The American Red Cross of Orange and Sullivan Counties will receive $10,000 for emergency services training and the purchase of needed emergency equipment. The Child Care Council of Orange County will receive $5,000 to train child care providers. CASA of Ulster County will receive $10,000 to train its volunteers who represent children in legal proceedings. The Orange County United Way will receive $10,000 to assist with the implementation of the region's 2-1-1 information line. Orange County Safe Homes will receive $25,000 in assistance to make improvements to its "safe-homes", where victims of domestic violence can live. Ulster-Greene ARC will receive $50,000 to install air conditioning at its Brookside School in Cottekill.

"These organizations are doing good deeds everyday. They are often unheralded but make a critical difference to the consumers who use them," Senator Bonacic said.

Laurie Kelley, Executive Director of Ulster-Greene ARC said, "For years, our students at Brookside School have attended year round, in the heat of summer, without properly functioning air conditioning. It may sound like a small thing to have adequate air conditioning in a building, but for our students and staff, it will make a huge difference in the quality of life and learning we can offer."

The Brookside School has 110 students and staff and serves people from Ulster, Greene, and Orange Counties.

Michelle McKeon, Executive Director of Safe Homes of Orange County said, "In Orange County and across the Hudson Valley, domestic violence is something that affects many families. Safe Homes offers a safe and caring environment for victims and their children. Our safe home will be upgraded significantly because of the funding secured by Senator Bonacic. These funds will make life more bearable in a family's time of need."

Other human services organizations for which the Senator has been able to secure funding include Red Cross Chapters in Ulster and Sullivan Counties, Ulster Cerebral Palsy, and Literacy Volunteers of America in Ulster, Orange, and Sullivan Counties.

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