I never planned to work in the nonprofit world, and I certainly never expected it to change my life in the amazing way that it has over the past 17 years.
It all started in 1992, outside my home on Greene Street: A man who had been hired by a local developer to sweep the block lost his job. We needed a clean street and I thought maybe we could help someone out at the same time.
So I met with the director of the Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC), a local homeless shelter. I told him that I wanted to hire a man to clean my block. I’d pay him and give him a reference to help him get future work. The director stood up from behind his desk and said, “Hallelujah, you could be my savior.” And the SoHo Partnership was born.
BRC soon called me to say they had another client who wanted to change his life. So I met with store managers on other streets in the area, asking them to chip in. It grew faster than I would ever have imagined. Within six months I had given up my photography practice. My whole life became centered on fighting homelessness.
Today the SoHo Partnership offers a comprehensive and successful training program to its participants. For four to six months they acquire work experience sweeping the streets while receiving counseling and job training. Our unique After-Care program provides continual support to graduates, 82 percent of whom have held a permanent job for two or more years. After nearly two decades of this new life, I have seen more than 900 men and women graduate from the program, moving into jobs and lives that they never would have thought possible.
The SoHo Partnership is not a charity. It is a community, a symbiotic relationship between our clients and the residents of Soho. Not only are our clients shattering the cycle of homelessness every day, they are also keeping Downtown Manhattan pristine. They have become an integral part of Soho, just as they have become so important to me personally.
I love to tell the story of the SoHo Partnership and how it changed my life. It feels especially important now that we are facing a crisis of homelessness. It’s at times like these that kindness and giving matter most. Each person we help is a step toward combating the homeless crisis in our city. To help fund our operation we hold a number of charitable initiatives throughout the year, including the SoHo Stroll, a shopping event granting participants exclusive access to discounts and promotions from neighborhood stores, galleries and restaurants. This year’s stroll takes place June 11 through 13, and more than 100 businesses are expected to participate.
Nobody should be without a home. Nobody, certainly not someone willing to work as hard as our clients do, should be without a job. And nobody should be deprived of the experience of giving back. If you had asked me 20 years ago where I thought I’d be today, I would have said something like, “retired, maybe lounging on a beach in the Caribbean.” I’m so happy that things didn’t turn out that way. The fight against homelessness has come to define my life. I hope you’ll make it a part of yours as well. For more information on the SoHo Partnership and this year’s SoHo Stroll, visit ace4homeless.org.
