Robin Hood Heroes Breakfast

Elsie grew up on the Lower East Side. Her mother struggled with addiction and mental illness, and by age 11, Elsie was spending most of her time in the streets. At 16, Elsie became pregnant and was arrested for drug sales and grand larceny. She was sentenced to five years’ probation and supervision by Avenues for Justice. With the support of the program, Elsie maintained her recovery, went back to school, graduated, and began working, first as a cashier and later as a pharmacy tech. She earned a degree in criminal justice at John Jay and returned to Avenues for Justice as a court advocate. Today, 25 years after her arrest, Elsie is a senior staff member at the organization that intervened at a critical time in her life, where she serves a caseload of 50 young people. Elsie is now preparing to get her master’s in social work.

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Jasmine grew up in Harlem. Despite being in the shelter system and switching schools four times by age six, Jasmine felt peace and safety in the classroom and did whatever she could to make it to school on time every day. She started playing baseball and connected with Harlem RBI, now DREAM. In addition to sports, the program provided wraparound academic support and mentorship that helped chart her path before being accepted to SUNY Plattsburgh. To make the transition from high school to college, Jasmine attended the DREAM Summer Bridge program. DREAM supported her once again when financial constraints made it difficult for her to continue on to her sophomore year. Through the Legends program for DREAM alumni, Jasmine landed an accounting internship at PwC in 2016. Today, she works full time in talent and recruiting, with a focus on creating an inclusive environment for people from underrepresented backgrounds and communities of color.

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Growing up in Togo, Zouberou excelled in math and science, but there were limited opportunities to seek higher education. There were only two public universities in the country, and few people went, knowing the likelihood of finding a job after graduating was low. In 2012, he followed the footsteps of his father, who immigrated to the U.S. and worked as a cab driver. When Zouberou arrived in New York City, he immediately pursued his dream of going to college but failed the reading and writing portion of Future Now’s entrance exam. Staff supported him to try again and helped him prep for his GED. As a student at Bronx Community College, Zouberou held two retail jobs and began working at Future Now as a math tutor. The program provided guidance as he applied to nine colleges and was accepted on a full-ride scholarship to a four-year university. He began classes in fall 2021 and is studying computer science. Zouberou wants to use his skills to help others, including those back home in West Africa.

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Nkosi was serving an 18-year sentence in prison when he met the man who would become his mentor and change the course of his life. From that day on, Nkosi committed himself to education, going on to obtain five degrees and to help transform the prison education system from the inside. Once released, Nkosi committed himself to helping others reentering – or “touching down” into society, helping to found the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund. Nkosi saw that what was missing from most reentry programs was mentorship to help individuals and families get back on their feet. His latest venture – Touchdown NYC – is a social good startup that matches transformative mentors with returning citizens who can help them navigate the maze of reentry. As they continue along their reentry path, Touchdown layers on support for their loved ones, from peers, and from service providers to create a strong foundation for their success.

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Bonnie is a Nurse Practitioner and Justice is a Medical Assistant who work on CUCS’s street medicine team providing medical care for New Yorkers experiencing homelessness. Throughout the pandemic, this duo has been scouring the streets of NYC to locate people who need medical attention, COVID testing, and referrals to resources, housing, and mental health services. CUCS helps individuals and families throughout NYC rise from poverty, exit homelessness, and be healthy.

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Allison came from Barbados and was working as a nanny when she got involved with advocating for labor rights for domestic workers. She has since become a founding member of the NDWA, who act as the nation’s leading voice for domestic workers who Allison lovingly refers to as the backbone of New York City. Throughout the pandemic, Allison has helped to get cash assistance to thousands of domestic workers on the frontlines of the pandemic.

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Yahaira always dreamt of being more than what was expected of her. She managed to become the first person in her family to go to college only to be forced to drop out when she became pregnant while navigating an unhealthy marriage. A month after giving birth, she fled to a domestic violence shelter with her newborn son. Yahaira was determined to find a way to transcend her circumstances rather than take a dead-end job. Eventually, she heard about NPower’s free intensive tech education program and interviewed the very next day. While she wasn’t working, studying, going to classes, or getting her son to and from daycare, Yahaira would convince almost every executive she met to mentor her. Her persistence and passion earned her an internship at Deloitte and, after graduating from NPower, Yahaira had three dream job offers to choose from. She’s been at World Wide Technology ever since and continues to rise through the ranks as she builds a better life for her and her son.

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Marcus and his two brothers were raised by a single mother in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. At the age of 13, he started working in an after-school program in Bed-Stuy to help his mom out with money, and soon found that it became more than just a way to contribute – he really liked giving back. From then on, Marcus worked his way up through the ranks, serving as a tutor, sports coach, music instructor, and – eventually – director. But when a Community School Director position opened up at P.S. 165 in Brownsville through Partnership with Children, he seized the opportunity to have a bigger impact beyond just the few hours he spent with kids in the after-school program. Now, Marcus works alongside P.S. 165’s Social Work Director to ensure that his students and their families have the resources and support that they need to get back on track – whether that’s with access to food, a MetroCard, a father figure, or even just a hug.

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Athenia is a wife, mother of three, entrepreneur, change maker, and a member of United for Brownsville’s Family Advisory Board (FAB). The FAB is a group of resident leaders who steer the work of United for Brownsville — a collaboration between SCO Family of Services and Community Solutions — to create a more equitable early childhood system in their community. As the pandemic hit, Athenia stepped into a new role as a staff member of United for Brownsville, where she has worked to create resource guides, virtual learning sessions for children, support groups for families, and more, to create community-led solutions for her neighbors.

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Taina started visiting POTS in the Bronx at age 11 with her family who was struggling with food insecurity. When she was 14, POTS hired Taina as a cleaner, and since then she has since worn many hats for the organization, including cook and volunteer coordinator. Taina is currently serving as the Associate Director of POTS’ Food and Dignity Programs, overseeing emergency food and day-to-day programs. Since she first visited the soup kitchen, POTS has grown to become the leading provider of emergency food, social services, case management and legal representation in the Bronx, acting as a “one-stop shop” to help low-income individuals and families move from crisis to stability and ultimately self-sufficiency.

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Orayne came to the U.S. from Jamaica as a young teenager, and struggled with homelessness while still in high school in Bed-Stuy. Despite living in a homeless shelter, he persevered and went on to become Valedictorian and to obtain his B.A. and M.S.W. degrees. Upon graduating, Orayne joined The Bronx Defenders who provide comprehensive legal and social services to families caught in the criminal legal and family regulation systems in the Bronx. In his role as a social worker, Orayne serves homeless youth and incarcerated young adults, leveraging his superpower of empathy and shared experience to serve those in need.

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Roy Castro grew up in New York during the crack epidemic. He watched his mother struggle with addiction and, as a teenager, became involved in dealing drugs himself. He was in and out of prison for much of his youth. After he was released from federal prison, Roy found STRIVE, an East Harlem-based job training program. Through STRIVE, he not only learned how to present himself for job interviews, but how to keep a job. Through STRIVE, he landed a job with Edy’s Ice Cream, where he cleaned freezers in corner stores. He worked multiple jobs and climbed the ranks in the distribution industry. After 10 years, he was able to buy D.M. Ice Cream Corp., where he has more than doubled the company’s revenue. Today, he is a member of the Board of Directors at STRIVE, the first graduate to serve on the board.

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Anthony Enriquez is an attorney specializing in deportation defense for child refugees. After he graduated from NYU Law in 2013, he began his legal career as a fellow working on immigration cases at longtime Robin Hood community partner The Door. During that time, a new crisis emerged of thousands of unaccompanied migrant children crossing the southern border. Anthony was one of the nonprofit immigration attorneys who co-founded the Immigrant Children Advocates’ Relief Effort, or ICARE, a coalition of legal service organizations that connect youth facing deportation with legal services, school enrollment and healthcare in New York City. Today, he is the Director of the Unaccompanied Minors Program at Catholic Charities Community Services, which is also a part of the ICARE coalition. At Catholic Charities, Anthony leads a team of more than 40 legal and social services workers who support children who are otherwise alone in immigration proceedings.

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Born in Alabama and raised in the Bronx, Alisa Pratt has spent two decades serving New York nonprofits and helping her neighbors. Following the loss of her husband at a young age, focusing on helping people and working in nonprofits helped her put her life back together. Working with nonprofits in the Bronx, Alisa was involved in creating and leading a girls’ step team, the McKinley Clovers, based in the McKinley Houses in the Bronx. The team has been internationally recognized for its talent and role in the community. In 2016, a bad relationship left Alisa with untenable debt and bad credit. Unable to afford the often expensive and cumbersome process of filing for bankruptcy, Alisa found Upsolve. Upsolve was a new nonprofit tech platform that helps low-income people file for bankruptcy for free. Through Upsolve, Alisa’s bankruptcy was resolved within two months, free of charge. With Upsolve’s help, Alisa was able to get a fresh start and focus on what she loves again — helping people.

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As co-founder and co-executive director of GOOD CALL, Jelani combines his entrepreneurial drive with his passion for social justice. As one of the fi rst “expert” fellows accepted to Blue Ridge Labs, Jelani brought both professional and life experience to his 2016 class. As a community organizer he had worked with both grassroots organizations like the National Taxi Workers Alliance to companies like Airbnb. He was raised in Far Rockaway by his mother who worked in education – and made sure he had the best pubic schooling available to him. But this didn’t protect him from witnessing the struggle faced by those living in communities where many are at or below the poverty line. An arrest at age 16 impressed on him how easily his life could have gone down a different path. Bringing this life experience to Blue Ridge Labs, his group came up with the idea for GOOD CALL – a hotline to connect people with a free lawyer at the time of arrest. The hotline was launched in the Bronx just two months after Jelani’s fellowship ended. As of today it is in all five boroughs of New York with plans to go national.

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Bobby Ashley’s imagination was sparked at age seven when he saw “Thomas and the Magic Railroad” with his father and imagined seeing his name in the credits. The Brownsville native lost his father shortly after, leaving his mother to raise Bobby and his four siblings alone. He and his brothers and sisters found solace watching the TV and the films of Spike Lee and John Singleton in their living room, and Bobby’s dream to become a director took hold.

Bobby aspired to go to Brooklyn College to study film, but didn’t have the GPA he needed to get in. Attending the inaugural class at Guttman Community College, he discovered a community of professors and classmates who helped him gain confidence and find his artistic voice – and get the grades he needed to attend Brooklyn College. There, he created a series called “The Ave,” an urban saga depicting the complexity of the Brownsville community. Since its 2016 debut, “The Ave” has garnered 20 million views on Amazon Prime.

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Sinade was four when her mother died and she went to live with her grandmother and six cousins in the Bronx. Her childhood memories are of sharing a plate of food – and a Christmas gift. When she was 14, her aunt died in her arms in a drowning accident. Overwhelmed by the trauma, Sinade fled her grandmother’s and spent five years living with different relatives. She was determined to have a life that wasn’t defined by struggle — but wasn’t sure how to get it until she saw an ad for NEW (Nontraditional Employment for Women).

NEW gave her help with housing, finances and counseling in addition to job training in carpentry. Just six years after walking through NEW’s doors, Sinade is a respected union carpenter, praised by her union brothers and sisters for her carpentry skills. A month ago, she became the first black, female business agent for NYC District Council of Carpenters. Today, she owns her own home – and an apartment for her grandmother who lives downstairs.

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When she became pregnant with twins, Wendy made herself a promise: She would give them a better childhood than her own, which included two years in foster care. But less than six months after her daughters were born, Wendy — who is a single mom — was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma.

Despite all the challenges she faced, Wendy was able to make good on her promise with help from Children’s Aid. Their Early Childhood Center in East Harlem was a safe haven for her twins, who graduated from prekindergarten with a passion for books and a joyful approach to life. Over those same three years, Wendy made progress in her battle against cancer and served on the Children’s Aid Policy Council.

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When he was 18 and living in El Salvador, Victor refused to join a vicious gang that had taken control of his neighborhood. A few weeks later, the gang leader put a gun to his head and threatened to kill him if he didn’t reconsider. Faced with no other option but near-certain death, Victor and his younger brother left their country and family behind, embarking on a harrowing seven-month journey to New York City.

After arriving in the United States, Victor was determined to make the most of his new life, but he didn’t speak any English and he didn’t know anyone but family. Luckily, he soon found his way to Terra Firma, where he was connected to free health care; a lawyer who is representing him in his asylum case; and a peer counseling group where he started working through the trauma he experienced with other young immigrants who also endured difficult journeys. Victor is about to graduate from high school and plans to attend college and become a history teacher.

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Ninoska ran away from her abusive mother’s apartment carrying a few shopping bags stuffed with clothes and a fierce determination to find a true home — a place where she felt safe and supported. She worked with six Robin Hood community partners to achieve that goal, but two played central roles in helping Ninoska move out of the shelter system and into a life defined by promise, not poverty: The Door and Breaking Ground.

At The Door, Ninoska found a one-stop shop for young people looking to rebuild their lives. They helped her finish high school, land internships, and apply to college. Breaking Ground provided Ninoska with an affordable apartment in a building with on-site access to social workers, healthy activities, and workshops on career development. Today, Ninoska is living on her own, working full-time, and pursuing her bachelor’s degree

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Everything changed for Juan De Jesus when Jon Roure, a college advisor from the CollegeBound Initiative, walked into his freshman English class. Growing up, Juan had never seen a successful man of color in the South Bronx.

Raised by a single immigrant mother, Juan spent his early years in search of a stable home. At times, they didn’t know where they would sleep at night. Juan and his mother moved around the city and then to the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, before coming back to New York.

Because he moved so much, Juan missed a lot of school and didn’t speak much English. In the South Bronx, his home was surrounded by drugs and violence. He was constantly bullied and mugged.

Isolated by violence and a lack of English proficiency, Juan found solace in chess. He became a highly successful player, yet he failed nearly all of his classes. He even considered dropping out just to play chess in the park.

But Jon believed in Juan and showed him a world beyond chess. With Jon’s guidance, Juan found a path to success and a passion for learning. He went on to Skidmore, becoming the first male in his family to attend college. After graduating, he started a national championship winning chess program at a local school. Now he is a special education teacher at the same high school he attended in the South Bronx giving low-income students who grew up like him an opportunity to succeed

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Born in Honduras, Gloria was raised by her mother, a barrier-breaking civil engineer who became the head of a government agency. Her family was forced to flee Honduras due to political violence. Her uncle was viciously murdered and her mother narrowly survived an assassination attempt. After struggling as an immigrant in the United States, Gloria is now an immigration attorney fighting to make the American Dream a reality for others who came to this country like her.

“In our darkest hour, the United States was a beacon of freedom. It offered safety and a new life for my family.” While she came for safety, her family only found legal trouble and incompetent immigration attorneys. “We lived in constant fear. We worried that my mother would be stopped by the police one day and be deported and we’d never see her again.”

Making matters worse, at 17, Gloria found out she had cancer. “I was overwhelmed. Not just by this terrifying disease, but about the treatment — we couldn’t afford it.”

She overcame her cancer and focused all her energy on school. In her freshman year, she finally received her green card.

“Three years after coming to the US, we could finally live without fear  —  and we were free to pursue our dreams.” An excellent student, Gloria graduated from Rutgers at the top of her class with two majors and two minors and went straight to New York Law School. From there, she applied to the Immigrant Justice Corps, which provides free, high-quality legal representation for immigrants.

“IJC gave me the opportunity to be a voice for families just like mine. Without IJC, I wouldn’t have gotten the training I needed to become the kind of immigration attorney I had always wished my family had.”

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Born in a small village in Egypt, Moawia Eldeeb was going to be a farmer like his father, grandfather, and generations before him. Then his younger brother was born with a rare genetic disorder. He has no sweat glands, so Egypt’s dry, brutal heat would kill him.

His family had no choice. They sold everything and moved to Queens, but surviving was hard. Moawia’s father worked 12 hours a day in a pizzeria, but it wasn’t enough to cover their expenses. So at 12 years old, Moawia started working 12-hour shifts in a pizzeria.

Two years later his home burned down, but this was a blessing. They moved to a shelter, and for the first time, Moawia could focus on studying, not working. He was 14 years old, but reading at a first-grade level, so he couldn’t go back to school. Instead, he went to the library, where he spent hours studying educational videos and caught up to his class within a year. His incredible talents and intelligence were unleashed.

Moawia’s family moved to the Queensbridge Projects, and Moawia blazed ahead at school. By 20, he had a bachelor’s in applied math, but he had no idea what to do with it until he heard about Coalition for Queens. At C4Q he learned to code, met entrepreneurs, and was exposed to a new world of possibilities. More than skills, he found a dream and gained the confidence to pursue it. Now he is the co-founder and CEO of a tech company valued at $7 million.

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DEBBIE DEFORD-MINERVA

One day, the Random House copy editor packed up a bag of books from her office and went to meet a teenager named Julia Blue. Debbie wanted to give back in a way that would change one person’s life. There was an instant connection. And then magic happened: thanks to Debbie and iMentor, Julia went to community college and Howard University and on to a career beyond her dreams.

JULIA BLUE

It’s hard to imagine that this incredibly successful professional fundraiser was once a shy bookworm. Julia Blue grew up in poverty on the Lower East Side. Her mother never graduated from high school, her father was only educated through third grade.

When her mentor, Debbie DeFord-Minerva, showed up with a bag of books, the world opened up. With Debbie’s help, Julia went to the Borough of Manhattan Community College and then Howard University. She now works in major gifts at the ASPCA, helping to protect the animals she loved as a shy girl. She remains the only one of her seven siblings to graduate college.

In 2013, Julia decided to follow in Debbie’s footsteps, becoming a mentor herself. She calls it one of the best things in her life.

FIDELIA TELFORT

When Fidelia Telfort was in high school, her parents expected her to quit and get a job. The family immigrated from Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, and life was a struggle in their new country. But Fidelia’s mentor, Julia Blue, had other plans for her. She wanted Fidelia to get an education — the great equalizer. Now Fidelia is in her second year at BMCC with plans to become a physical therapist.

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As a case worker at Coalition for the Homeless, Jessie Garcia is on the front lines of the city’s housing crisis, helping working parents and individuals get out of shelters and into homes. But it’s a challenge: There are simply not enough affordable homes in New York City. So, tens of thousands of families end up in the shelter system.

It’s a situation she knows all too well. Jessie and her four children were once homeless. To escape her abusive husband, she took them to live in a shelter on the Upper West Side.

It was the beginning of a new life. From the shelter, she moved to a railroad apartment in Ridgewood, Queens and landed in a job training program at Coalition for the Homeless. Through the Coalition, she discovered she had choices in life and a passion for helping people. When an internship at the Coalition became a full time job, she was overjoyed.

One year later, unable to afford a $500 rent increase, she faced eviction. Again, the Coalition helped her find a new home in Bed-Stuy. She loves the neighborhood, but she fears the day when it will become too expensive as well.

Which is why she is so committed to her work at the Coalition, helping others like her find their own homes.

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What is it like to be raised by the foster care system? Demetrius Johnson describes it as a rollercoaster. Child Protective Services took him from his mom as an infant due to drug abuse and neglect. By the time he was in kindergarten he had lived in three foster homes.

Demetrius thought he had found his “forever mom” when he was adopted at 6 by Mrs. Johnson. But life was not peaceful at the Johnson home. Seven years later she gave Demetrius back to the system in what’s called a broken adoption. Impossibly, Demetrius’ childhood got harder. He moved constantly — living in 25 foster homes and attending four high schools — and lost trust in authority.

Demetrius seemed destined to become another sad statistic. Except he didn’t. Almost miraculously, caring adults began to take notice of Demetrius and recognize his potential. His attorney at Lawyers For Children, Laura Daley, helped him find a safe, stable home and transfer to a good high school. He graduated with a Regent’s Diploma and 3.6 GPA.

Today, Demetrius is living with a loving and supportive foster family and will soon be legally adopted by another couple. He is studying for his Associate’s Degree at St. John’s University and plans to transfer to NYU next fall to study law. As a Youth Ambassador for Lawyers for Children, Demetrius relays his experiences in the foster care system and with the miracle workers at Lawyers For Children.

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Jabali Sawicki was the founding principal of Uncommon Schools Excellence Boys Charter School of Bedford Stuyvesant. Under his leadership, the school was ranked the top elementary school in New York City. Prior to that, he taught Science at Roxbury Preparatory Charter School in Boston, where students earned top scores by every measure. Jabali is a graduate of Oberlin College, where he received a dual degree in Biology and Philosophy. He received his master’s degree in Educational Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University.

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Davida Adams David is a second-generation alumna of Brooklyn Kindergarten Society (BKS) which her mother also attended. Davida credits BKS for transforming her from a frightened two-year-old from the projects of Bushwick into a confident child with a deep love of learning and the vision of a world filled with possibilities.

That formative love of learning has reaped big rewards. Davida excelled at parochial schools, then at SUNY Binghamton, where she was a triple major in philosophy, politics and law. To save money for law school, she worked at Radio City Music Hall where she met top performers on events like the Tony Awards and the MTV Video Music Awards. Several years later, she was awarded a master’s degree in Organization and Global Management and Urban Leadership from Ashford University in Georgia. While she seriously considered law school, the days and nights in entertainment — particularly the creative side of production excited her and so, rather than enroll in law school, she embraced a new career in the entertainment industry. She now has her own events company with credits at NBC and Viacom for live telecasts including the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting and the New Year’s Eve Ball Drop in Times Square.

Although she fulfilled her dream to work in the bright lights of the New York City entertainment world, Davida has other dreams that harken back to the early opportunities given to her. She is working toward founding an educational center for children, much like BKS, where kids and teens, can be safe, engaged and inspired. To make this happen, Davida will soon begin training at the Academy for Child Protective Services.

This daughter of Brooklyn still calls Brooklyn home.

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When you think of someone in need of help to feed their family, do you think of a 32-year employee of the postal service, or of any employee with a 32-year tenure at any company? Most people don’t, but they would be wrong. Rose Jacob isn’t  one of the lucky ones. She got a tough start in life. The daughter of a hard working, but abusive father who was permanently disabled on his job as a dockworker, her family struggled with hunger and the lost opportunities common to those living in poverty. As a way out, Rose left home at 17 to marry, but ultimately found herself in a violent marriage and with two daughters to protect and support.

After one particularly violent episode, Rose left her husband. After a difficult time spent sleeping in the car, friends provided cash so Rose could rent an apartment and buy food. But with only a GED, little work experience and few marketable skills, she struggled to find work. Finally, with only $5 in her pocket, luck found her. Rose had applied to work for the United States Postal Service and a letter appeared directing her to report to work the next day. So began her 32-year career as a letter carrier. Rose often worked overtime to pay the bills. Due to significant medical issues, she was forced to retire three years ago.

After a successful career, Rose has returned to a daily struggle. Her pension places her $22 above the threshold for food stamps and Medicaid. Her rent absorbs one-half of her income. She has outstanding medical bills, and she requires open heart surgery in the near future. The assistance provided by The River Fund New York has returned some measure of security to her life. With food assistance from The River Fund New York, it’s possible for her to stretch her dollars to pay for medicine, medical costs and transportation to medical appointments.

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Judge Alex Calabrese leads the Red Hook Community Justice Center, where social workers,
educators, counselors and court officers employ a novel approach to addressing the problems
of offenders and the complaints that bring them before the court. Since 2006, Robin Hood has
partnered with the Center for Court Innovation to understand the issues causing individuals to
become involved in crime and solve for them, with inspiring results. Our grant focuses on
youthful offenders, intervening before they commit felonies and become inculcated in a life of
crime through a jail sentence. The Center works with all those brought before the court for a
range of issues, from housing, to family issues to severe crime.

At the Heroes Breakfast, Judge Calabrese will spoke along with Tina Dixons, one of the star
“graduates” of this remarkable partnership. The Judge used Tina’s repeat appearances at the
Justice Center to get her the help she needed to overcome ten years of drug use and
homelessness, begun by a childhood that was simply horrific. Tina, since certified as a dental
assistant, coordinates dental clinics for a network of drug rehabilitation programs (Phoenix
House), and recently graduated from college and began studies for an MBA.

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In 2008, New Jersey residents of Tom’s River founded this organization to respond to individuals in crisis, wherever that happened to be. Little did they know how much their infrastructure would be needed after Hurricane Sandy hit the Jersey Shore. They have now fielded requests for assistance from over 2000 individuals affected by the storms and are providing help to rebuild and repair homes and lives.

Eric Katz is one such individual assisted by Hometown Heroes. Two weeks before Sandy hit, Eric and his dad put the finishing touched on a 4-year renovation and retrofitting of his home in Tom’s River. Eric, an athletic 30-year-old, lost the use of his legs at age 15 and needed to modify his home for life in his wheel chair. The effect of Sandy was devastating, wiping out the painstaking work of several years and requiring Eric to gut his home below 4 feet; the new flood plain maps have created a web of confusion regarding insurance requirements, the need to elevate his home, and when he can get back in his house. None of this has crimped the enthusiasm of this extraordinary young man, whose full-time work is building prosthetics for those who have lost the use of their own limbs. Hometown Heroes, with funds we provided from the 12.12.12 concert, gave Eric $10,000 toward the cost of rebuilding his home.

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When Success Academies Charter Schools (SACS) began in 2007, they had grand ambitions for growth, the conviction that they could operate excellent schools while leading the charge of education reform, and a bench of leaders less deep than we would have liked. After making these reservations known and declining to fund their initial efforts, we became convinced that the network had more promise than we first believed, and that if we were serious about supporting education reform, we should support their efforts. Since that time, SACS has
posted a string of impressive successes that others have observed but have been unable to duplicate. Particularly of note is their enormously strong performance on state standardized tests in 2013. These tests were the first to be based on the new Common Core standards, and educators inside and outside the charter school movement feared and prepared for a precipitous drop in scores. While the predicted drop was in evidence across nearly all schools and networks, SACS posted gains in their students’ scores compared to even the previous year. Indeed, students in their schools out-perform suburban districts like Scarsdale.

Eva Moskowitz, the C.E.O. and co-founder of SACS is both an educational and political leader; her academic success and advocacy efforts have an impact on the entire charter community. SACS was among the first charter school networks to apply for and consistently be awarded multiple charters; they are now moving to merge charter schools to achieve scale in operations, governance, and special services. SACS will open its first high-school in 2014 and is on-track to achieve its ambitious growth plans, due in no small part to Ms. Moskowitz’s ability to secure public school space for these schools. The network is regularly able to mobilize thousands of parents to demonstrate support at public events for SACS and the cause of charter schools. As the Bloomberg administration sunsets, the movement for high-quality charter schools in NYC may have no better champion than Eva Moskowitz.

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One result of the terrorist attacks of 9/11 was that 13,000 restaurant workers lost their jobs. As the dust settled, some of the 250 of these who had worked at Windows on the World came together to support one another and their families find new employment. This effort became Restaurant Opportunities Center (ROC), a worker-led agency dedicated to improve the lot of restaurant workers, many of whom are immigrants, through legal and social redress. The group established a training component in 2007, with the aim of creating a program excellent enough to receive funding from Robin Hood. Since we came aboard in 2008, the program has added a national office and replicated in cities including Miami, Los Angeles, New Orleans and Washington, DC. In 2009, following a lengthy litigation process, ROC prevailed on behalf of its constituents, winning about $3.9 million in stolen tips and wages for about 250 workers. In NYC, ROC annually trains and places 150 low-income individuals in good restaurant jobs,
some with great growth potential in fine dining establishments.

Sekou Siby was one of those who survived from Windows on the World (his roommate and 72 others did not.) Siby worked as a high school French teacher in his native Cote d’Ivoire before seeking political asylum in the USA. He was among the early organizers of ROC, eventually becoming its Executive Director. He credits Robin Hood’s program and management assistance staff with teaching him how to be an effective manager, skills he now uses to facilitate further national expansion of ROC.

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Even as Robin Hood moved away from standalone after-school programs, we’ve singled out Harlem RBI as one of our few exceptions. While it began as purely a baseball program, with Robin Hood’s support, it used the lure of baseball to engage young students from East Harlem in academic studies. The program offers participants rich academic supports, rivaling our other education-related programs in driving disadvantaged students past the post of high school graduation. Focused on improving academic achievement, Harlem RBI launched in 2008 a charter school even as it continued to work with traditional public schools by offering students its artful combination of sports and academics. Our grants support Harlem RBI’s academic focus and the results are evident. 97 percent of the 12th graders who participated in Harlem RBI graduated high school. Student persistence through the first year of college is nearly 20 percentage points higher than the city average. We have also provided a capital grant of $1 million to 2011. In classic Robin Hood fashion, we have find many other ways to help the organization run like a well – disciplined business, including by placing two Robin Hood donors to Harlem RBI’s board.

Rich Berlin, the Executive Director, came to the foundering program as a volunteer coach and has since provided exemplary leadership, making Harlem RBI one of the most respected institutions in the East Harlem community. At the Heroes breakfast, besides hearing from Rich, we heard from Officer Jason Medina of the Washington, DC police department. Described by Rich Berlin as one of the most challenging teenagers he encountered, Medina persevered through college and training to now provide community policing in very tough housing projects on a bicycle. For his efforts to replicate the model of Harlem RBI there, he was honored as Police Officer of the Year in 2011 by the department.

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The Navy Yard had an employment center before Robin Hood entered, but it was buried a mile inside the perimeter of the Navy Yard, requiring unemployed workers to make their way past military-style checkpoints and barbed wire to enter the privileged sanctum. That was a prescription for failure. Now, with our help, the center has relocated to Building 92, readily accessible to foot and automobile traffic on Flatbush Avenue. In the first year of our grant, the employment center not only meet its goal of placing 200 unemployed workers in jobs, but it positioned itself to boost that number by 50 percent this year. At a time of citywide economic malaise, to raise placement numbers at all, let alone 50 percent, reflects superlative performance. The important news is that these jobs, in both traditional and emerging industries, pay more than $23,000 annually. The Navy Yard has proven an effective collaborator, becoming a key partner in our work with the housing authority and other workforce development grantees. New projects are burgeoning at the Navy Yard and promise a robust stream of good jobs.

At the Heroes breakfast, Jocelynne Rainey, Senior Vice President for Human Resources and Workforce Development, spoke about the plans for the employment center and its partnership with Robin Hood. We heard from Sara Rivera, a single mother who lives in Marcy projects and was placed in a small electric company through the employment center.

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Delkys was born in the Dominican Republic. Abused by his father and trying to manage his own epileptic seizures, Delkys and the rest of his family made it to the United States. But the best job Delkys could find to help support them was at McDonalds.

Delkys connected with Per Scholas earlier this year through a social worker. He enrolled in the Per Scholas Institute for Technology and graduated second in his June 2011 class. Now he is working for a midtown Manhattan technology company on client IT issues. His epilepsy is under control and he is helping put his sister through college. For Robin Hood, Delkys’ success story — like that of so many Per Scholas graduates — is “indisputable proof that the American Dream still lives.”

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Norman Atkins is the Co-Founder of Relay GSE and served as President in its first decade; he becomes the Board Chair on January 1. During his tenure, Relay GSE grew from a small teacher preparation program serving 300 teachers in New York City to an accredited, independent, nonprofit graduate school of education serving 3,500 current and aspiring teachers in 18 cities and 1,200 school leaders nationwide.

Atkins currently serves as CEO of Together Education, a nonprofit that incubates and supports innovative education organizations, including Relay Lab Schools, which recently launched a turnaround network in partnership with the San Antonio Independent School District. He is also the Founder, Board Chair, and former CEO of Uncommon Schools, one of the nation’s highest-performing nonprofit charter management organizations with 52 schools serving 20,000 students. In 1997, Atkins co-founded and co-led North Star Academy of Newark, one of New Jersey’s first and most celebrated charter schools. From 1989 to 1994, he was the Co-Executive Director of the Robin Hood Foundation in New York City. In recent years, Atkins has helped found several other education organizations, including Zearn, a comprehensive, Tier-1 digital math program reaching more than two million students.

Atkins has supported a number of global education projects and served on the board of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls. He is a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow, an Ashoka Fellow, and a Wexner Heritage Alum. He has been recognized as a technology innovator by Forbes and has been inducted into the Charter School Hall of Fame.

Atkins began his career as a journalist, writing about education, poverty, politics, culture, and social issues for The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The Boston Globe. He earned an A.B. in History from Brown University and an M.A. in Educational Administration from Columbia University Teachers College. Atkins and his wife, Angie, live in New York City and are the parents of three adult children.

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Mutiya has overcome adversity, refusing to continue the cycle of victimization, poverty, teen pregnancy, neglect, alcohol addiction and the foster care system. She chose to create a life of fulfillment as a wife, mother of 7, author, educator, activist and the CEO of Vision Works Publishing. She also created multiple forums in which she coaches others, on how they can do the same in their own lives.

At an early age Mutiya recognized her power to communicate and influence those around her in a positive way. She saved her mother’s life twice- once when she was 7 years old from suicide, and again at 15. When Mutiya became a peer counselor in high school, she recognized that many of her family’s turbulent experiences were related to her mom’s alcohol abuse. She arranged to take her mom to an Alcoholic Anonymous meeting. Shortly after her intervention, her mom checked into a residential substance abuse program. Her mom is alive today and maintained her sobriety for over 20 years.

Mutiya attributes her own success to her ability to convert tragedy into triumph, implement dreams and her inability to accept failure as a final destination. Her heroes are the two most influential people in her life, her mother Rahil and husband David. Her mom gave her the gift of resilience, work ethic and the value of education. She nurtured Mutiya’s creativity, allowed her to express herself, and encouraged her to convert her emotional pain into writings of strength and beauty. Mutiya’s mom loved and believed in her, more than she loved and believed in herself. She built on her mother’s “good examples” and chose to avoid the pitfalls of her mother’s issues with addiction.

Her husband David gave Mutiya the gift of stability, support, intellectual/spiritual stimulus and provides a continuous source for creative challenge. David helped Mutiya build a strong foundation for their family that provided a platform from which she and their 7 children could soar and attain
success.

Today, Mutiya is a college graduate, public school teacher, homeowner, business owner, workshop facilitator, and the co-author of ten character building children’s books written with her husband. She is fulfilling her purpose, living an extraordinary life of her choosing, while being a positive resource to her community and the nation.

Mutiya’s grateful to those who nurtured and inspired her success along the way with priceless contributions. She demonstrates her appreciation by giving back. Mutiya actively volunteers her time and celebrity to inspire economically disadvantaged children. Her sole purpose is to show youth how to overcome the obstacles in their lives, by taking destiny into their own hands. She’s particularly fond of working with an organization called Women In Need, which rescued Mutiya and her mom when she was 15 and faced the horrifying reality of being one of America’s homeless families.

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Jose Anthony Pagan, a decorated veteran from the Bronx and a participant in Jericho’s Veterans Initiative enabling veterans to return to civilian life with dignity, shared his story of challenge and success with the audience at the Robin Hood 21st Annual Heroes Award Breakfast at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York City.  Mr. Pagan served in Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2006 to 2009 including two years in a bomb-detonation unit.  He was awarded a commendation medal for his service.

“Veterans deserve the same level of commitment and loyalty at home that they give us abroad.  We are proud to be enabling Jose Anthony Pagan – a humanitarian, husband, father and soldier – to overcome the considerable obstacles he has faced since his return and achieve his ambitions,” Jericho Project Executive Director Tori Lyon said.

Mr. Pagan participates in Jericho Project’s Supportive Apartment Program that fast-tracks veterans and their families to affordable, furnished apartments.  The program helps veterans land jobs and build skills through its successful Workforce Opportunities program, as well as relapse prevention, family counseling, and crisis management.

After a hard transition to civilian life involving homelessness and since moving into his own furnished apartment and working with the counselors at Jericho, Mr. Pagan has landed a full time security job and is working on family reunification with his wife and treasured daughter.

Jericho’s is also building two Veterans Residences in the Bronx, providing apartments designed for veterans’ special needs and state-of-the-art counseling in an environment of wellness.

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Shereece Blake is a 21-year-old graduate of KCC. She grew up in Kingston, Jamaica, in a low-income, violent neighborhood. She witnessed children being abused and saw her aunt immediately after she was killed. Blake’s experiences led her to decide long ago that she wanted to become a lawyer. She credits KCC’s Learning Communities program for her success. Through the program, she felt she always had someone to turn to when she had a question, needed help or money to buy textbooks. Blake graduated with honors in January 2009. She recently took the LSAT and hopes to attend either Fordham Law School or Columbia University to study family law.

KCC, a City University of New York college, serves 30,000 students a year with a median income of less than $30,000. The Learning Communities program tries to address a daunting problem in New York City’s community colleges by offering freshmen financial aid, intensive academic advising, tutoring, personal and career counseling, and case management. KCC attributes a 40 percent increase in graduation rates over the last six years to the success of the program.

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About a decade ago, Dominick D’Angelo made a significant career shift, transitioning from his role as a vice president at JP Morgan Chase to pursue education. After obtaining a master’s degree in education, he taught math in two public schools before joining the city’s Leadership Academy for principal training. Since 2007, he has served as the principal at I.S. 228 David A. Boody. Although he embraced education, D’Angelo maintains a business-oriented mindset, viewing school management akin to running a business, with parents and students as customers. He actively pursues grant opportunities and aims to equip his students with skills for success in the global economy.

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