From Your Views in today's Record:
Columnist Lawrence Aaron has been a perceptive observer of the homeless problem and a strong advocate for its resolution. He is correct that Bergen County has a long way to go in ending chronic homelessness ("Working toward a solution for the homeless," Other Views, Aug. 11).
However, the county has gone beyond the stage described by Aaron: two agencies meeting and plans for a 100-bed county shelter when there are 780 identified single homeless individuals.
For instance, Christ Church Community Development Corp. (CCCDC) is collaborating with the Englewood Housing Authority to place a minimum of 20 chronically disabled individuals in permanent housing through the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Shelter Plus Program. CCCDC will be providing supportive services to assist these individuals in making the transition. In addition, it is coordinating with Advance Housing, another non-profit agency, to help secure housing for other homeless people.
At the same time CCCDC is working with the county's Department of Human Services Comprehensive Emergency Assistance Committee to assure temporary refuge for those still without a permanent home. Moreover, the agency is providing counseling, case management and advocacy services for individuals and families at risk.
CCCDC is only one of a number of social services organizations that have taken on the challenge of homelessness. The problem isn't easily eliminated. But if government, not-for-profits, business, citizens and clients pull together we can, as Aaron observes, make a difference and reclaim lives as well as our spirit of community brotherhood.
Benjamin Greenspan
Hackensack, Aug. 16
The writer is executive director of the CCCDC