♪♪

>> Funding for the

"Long Island Business Report"

has been provided by...

The Rauch Foundation

and by the JPB Foundation

and the Ford Foundation.

♪♪

>> Hello, and thank you

for being with us.

I'm Jim Paymar with the

"Long Island Business Report."

Long Island boasts some of

the wealthiest zip codes

in the country, but 165,000

Long Island residents live

below the poverty line.

For Long Island's low-income

residents, access to medical

care, education, and other

social services is a constant

struggle.

Organizations such as

Catholic Charities and

the United Way provide

much-needed assistance

to these residents to help them

through very difficult times.

As part of our ongoing

reporting initiative,

"Chasing the Dream: Poverty

and Opportunity in America,"

we're taking a look at how

Long Islanders, even when making

a decent living, can't cope

in one of America's most

expensive regions.

And joining me in the discussion

is Betty Eberhardt,

Vice President of

Community Impact at

United Way of Long Island,

and Laura Cassell, C.E.O.

of Catholic Charities of

the Diocese of Rockville Centre.

Betty and Laura, thank you

so much for being with us today.

I really appreciate it.

>> Thanks for having us.

>> 165,000 Long Islanders

live below the poverty line.

That's a huge number.

How significant is that problem

for a county with close

to 3 million people, Betty?

>> Well, I think it's important

that we focus some of our energy

on helping those people rise

above the poverty level so that

they can afford to survive

in our community.

At United Way, we're also

focusing on people who are just

slightly above that poverty

line.

They're working, but they're not

earning enough to manage

the finances in that expensive

community.

>> Laura, when we talk about

the poverty level, the federal

poverty guidelines, I believe,

says that a family of four

has to have $24,000 a year

in order to survive.

That's ridiculous on

Long Island.

>> Right [ Laughs ]

It certainly is.

>> But I understand that

the level here is about

$70,000.

Is that correct?

>> It's at least $70,000.

Probably, well, you know,

something more than that.

Maybe closer to $80,000.

I know there have been a number

of analyses done that have tried

to figure out what that number

actually is on Long Island,

but we know that there's

a substantial gap between

the federal poverty level

and what it actually takes

to just cover the bare

necessities for a family

of four, and so we see that

every day at Catholic Charities.

We serve people who are

struggling, living in poverty

as defined by

the federal government,

but we also serve many --

as Betty said -- many of

the working poor who rely on

some sort of supplemental

assistance beyond what they earn

to just survive.

>> But Long Island can't

kind of fit the paradigm that

the federal government sets up

for what the poverty level is

because, Laura, like you're

saying, it's $70,000, $80,000

a year to live here, but they've

set this number at $24,000.

So how do we deal with that?

>> Being a federal poverty

guideline, it's covering people

in Alabama, as well as people

in New York, so when we look

at some of the eligibility

criteria for a lot of programs,

we'll use 125% of poverty,

200% of poverty because it's

an unrealistic number here.

There aren't people who can live

on that without substantial

government support in subsidies.

>> Maybe one person could live

on $24,000, but not a family

of four.

>> A family of four.

So, United Way of New York State

recently did a study, looking

at what they have defined

as ALICE households.

These are asset-limited,

income-challenged, and employed

households, and they're -- not

by any means could we, at this

point, call them "working poor"

because they're making $60,000,

$70,000, and nobody looks at

that as being poor, but when

you add up the cost of housing,

transportation, healthcare,

taxes...

>> Food.

>> ...and food, and if you're

a family of four and have,

you know, two children, dealing

with $12,000 worth of child care

in a year, that jumps your

sustainability number up

to $80,000 or $90,000.

>> And United Way has

a Long Island budget of

$17 million, and, Laura,

Catholic Charities has about

$36 million?

>> Over $36 million.

>> So between the two of you,

you've got about $50 million

that you're putting out into

the community.

Is it enough?

>> It's definitely not enough.

I mean, you know, we're two

organizations out of many

not-for-profits that exist

on Long Island, and we each

try to tackle a piece of

the pie, but this, as you said

in the intro, it's a very

complex situation, and so

there are so many layers to it

when we talk about that rate

to just barely survive on

Long Island, and we all know

young people, they graduate

from college, and, you know,

they have opportunity, but

they also have a lot of debt

associated with their college.

So, you know, when we talk

about all the moving pieces

we certainly have seen with

the Affordable Care Act, which

definitely expanded access

to health insurance for a lot

of folks -- and that was done

partially through what Betty was

saying, where the eligibility

here in New York was 138%

of poverty level, so that

expanded access for a number

of families, but, you know,

we also see in

the Affordable Care Act,

and one of the things, even as

they debated, they're talking

about retaining, is the ability

for dependent coverage up till

age 26.

Well, why does it have to go

through age 26?

I mean, you think about that.

You know, you think by age 26,

people are independent and

self-sufficient, but not

if they have a debt load

from college to pay off,

and they have to provide

for all these other very

inflated pieces of the budget.

>> And when we talk about people

and poverty, I mean, we're

talking about every one from

little kids to teenagers

to young adults to adults,

families, and as senior

citizens.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> So, how do we find

a methodology that can help

these people become productive

members of society and start

to make the kind of income

that they need on Long Island?

Is there a way to elevate them?

>> One of the things that

United Way moved into from

being an organization that

funded other nonprofits like

Catholic Charities, and we fund

100 partner agencies to do

the work they do out in

the community.

We also engaged in some direct

service programs in the areas

of job training...

>> Mm.

>> ...and if you are giving

people the skills that they can

elevate the position or have

a career path instead of a job.

We talk about the unemployment

rate.

If the jobs are all in

a retail area where people

are lucky to earn $10 an hour,

but the sustainability is $40

an hour, there's no way they're

surviving.

>> You'd have to work two or

three jobs, and everyone in your

family has to be working in

order to get up to that $70,000,

$80,000.

>> And lose one of those jobs,

and you're right down again.

>> So, I mean, you talk about

training programs, and it's fine

and well to train people, but

are there the good jobs out

there once you get them trained?

Or do they have to move

elsewhere?

I mean, the young people have

been moving off the Island

for a very long time, which is

creating a brain drain, and

that's not a good thing for us.

So, how do we get these people

into good jobs if the good jobs

don't exist?

>> Right.

Well, that's a piece of

the puzzle, and I think,

you know, you ask,

"Well, what can we do?"

There isn't one solution.

There's no silver bullet here.

So we know that it's really

a tapestry of things that

we need to weave together,

and so opportunities for

training to be eligible for

jobs, but we also need for

government to look at

the bigger picture and see

how we can address the larger

concerns and challenges of

our economy.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> You know, it's not just

healthcare that prices have

soared.

It's -- You know, it's all

the other costs.

It's housing, it's child care,

and so, you know, there are

distinct programs.

It's like a patchwork of things

that are out there, but they're

not necessarily as in sync with

one another as they could be,

and so, you know, as part

of the Catholic Church,

the Church has been doing this

for a long time -- 2,000 years.

>> Right.

>> And so we have a worldwide

presence, and so we are in

so many different places where

there are different government

structures and different

economies, and yet there's

always poverty, and so I believe

part of the solution is really

building community, and in

the current environment where

everyone is walking around

with their electronic devices

and social media, there's

something to be said for looking

into the eyes of another

human being and having

a conversation with them

and caring and speaking as if

everyone has a role to play

when it comes to poverty,

not just --

It's not just about one

government program or about

one social-service agency,

it's about all of us.

>> You're talking about creating

more of a "we" generation

rather than a "me" generation,

where you just think,

"Well, how do I make it,

how do I do well for my

family?," and, more or less,

have a collective thrust

to try and create a better

Long Island for all of us.

Isn't that the...?

>> If we create opportunity

for people, most people will

step up to that challenge.

So, United Way has run

a program called YouthBuild,

which serves at-risk youth

18 to 24, often not

high school graduates,

often having some brushes

with the law, whose path

is not a good prospect.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> We bring those young people

into a training program with

leadership development, with

self-esteem building, helping

them to break, perhaps,

a generational cycle of poverty.

Last year, out of the 80

students that we serviced,

90% of them are employed now...

>> Mm-hmm.

>> ...2% are in college.

>> Really?

>> We will teach them good

income-generating trades.

We've got one young man working

on the bridges in New York City

as an ironworker.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> They will have good jobs

with benefits with the ability

to save for their retirement,

for their future, for unexpected

costs, and their children

will no longer be in

the position they were

when they grew up in a very

dysfunctional, maybe, family.

>> But you mentioned the good

job, and it was in

New York City.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> What about on Long Island?

>> We have companies that

partner with us on most of our

job-training programs that

actually will put young people

through training.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> We do a companion program

to YouthBuild called VetsBuild,

which trains veterans returning

and separating from

the military, looking for

positions, and we train in

high-end green energy...

>> Mm-hmm.

>> ...solar high-end HVAC.

These are fields that are

growing, and the corporations

that partner with us have

job slots open for graduates

to move into.

So the partnership with

the corporate community

is very important.

>> Yeah, and so there's a piece

of that -- when you have people

who have caring hearts,

and they are business leaders

and community leaders, and they

make that commitment to partner

with us, that's what, I think,

really is part of what's gonna

change the economy and

the opportunities here on

Long Island.

You know, there's something

to be said for letting

the market play its role,

as well, as part of

the solution, and so, you know,

we've seen that in different

ways, but just most recently,

the whole example with

the EpiPen and the cost of

EpiPen and how it escalated,

and then competitors jumped in

and competed, and the costs

have come down, and they've

gained market share, and

the originators lost a bit

of market share.

>> Speaking of healthcare,

that is a major concern,

and both of your organizations

help people who have problems

paying their bills, and

I guess we have no idea

where things are going.

We keep caring about replace

and repeal and repeal and

replace, and plans being put

out, and what's gonna happen

to these folks who might lose

their healthcare?

And are your organizations

ready to step in if they need

that help?

>> Well, financially fragile

households are always sort

of ready to fall off the brink,

if it were.

If one major health problem

that arises that you now don't

have the money to pay for that

doctor or get that prescription

means that you're going to

potentially let some other bill

go.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> So while we may not directly

address the loss of somebody's

insurance or lower health

coverage, the other supportive

programs that we offer might be

able to say, "We have a program

for utility assistance."

>> Mm-hmm.

>> If you are struggling,

which bill do I pay?

Do I get the medicine?

Do I put oil in my tank?

Come to United Way.

We'll help you through our

Project Warmth Program, and

that will free up some money

in your budget to get the things

you need that aren't covered

through other programs.

>> How much money do both

of you get percentagewise

from the federal government?

>> Well, from government,

in general, for us, it's

probably around 70% of our

operation -- not a lot of direct

federal dollars.

Some federal pass through,

but state and local dollars

that come to our budget.

>> And Betty?

>> Ours does fluctuate based

on the contracts, so probably

about a third or less of

the budget if we pick up

a new federal contract.

A lot of our work is with

the state, as opposed to

federal.

They're a lot broader contracts

to win.

>> Right.

>> But governments are

struggling.

I mean, the budget deficits

in Nassau County have been

going on forever.

Suffolk's doing a little better,

but not a whole lot better.

Everyone's kind of struggling.

We need to get more revenue

into the counties if they're

going to also assist you.

>> Right.

And I think as Betty talks

about creating opportunities

and partnering with potential

employers, you know, that's

the kind of thing that starts

to turn the economy around,

and then you have people who

were on the rolls who are now

paying taxes, and we have

the privilege, through our

programs, of seeing lives

transform.

Not everybody's life is

transformed, but when you see

one life transformed, I mean,

it gives you hope, and it keeps

you devoted to this work, which

can be, you know, at times quite

frustrating because we want to

see -- you know, we want to see

paradise.

[ Laughs ]

>> Right.

Of course. Of course.

I don't want to date either

one of you.

I'm older than probably both

of you, but, you know, when

you think about the number

of people in need, and you've

been doing this for a very long

time -- I think around 30 years

each, something like that?

>> Yep.

>> Are things getting better

or are things getting worse?

What's your evaluation?

You're the pros.

You've been at this for a long

time.

>> It's pretty much the same.

There is always going to be,

perhaps, this lower

poverty-based group of people

who, you know, need help just

to manage.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> I see a lot of positive

things in...

the job-training area,

in young people getting

employed.

Seniors is a hard area,

I think, because they haven't

had the opportunity to really

save the way we now know

we have to...

>> Right.

>> ...and your level of health,

also, you know, affects that.

People with disabilities also

struggle with that fixed-income

bracket.

>> And the seniors are a growing

demographic, so people are

living longer, and we actually

operate a lot of programs

for seniors, so we have

senior centers where seniors

come Monday through Friday

for a meal, and while they're

there, they interact with one

another socially.

Of course, there's bingo,

there's line dancing, there's

exercise, but they also do

artwork, they crochet, they

make peanut-butter-and-jelly

sandwiches for schoolchildren,

and so I always like to talk

about that program because

we have a tendency when we look

at government programs

as viewing the folks who

participate in that program

as consumers of things that

we give them, but they're

members of the community,

and, in so many ways, because

that program is there, they're

able to give back, and so,

you know, when I talk about that

feeling of community, I really

think it's an overlooked part

of the solution.

>> You know, one thing that kind

of shocked me reading through

some of the material is

the high level of AIDS/H.I.V.

on Long Island.

We have the highest suburban

rate of any county, any region

of the country?

>> That doesn't surprise me.

As Catholic Charities,

we actually were pioneers

in terms of developing services

for individuals who were

struggling with H.I.V./AIDS

when people were just beginning

to learn about it, and there

was really a stigma about it,

and we saw right away that there

needed to be some sort of

a support, and so we actually

developed dental services

for folks with H.I.V./AIDS.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> Now, I will point out to you,

that program no longer exists

because in the years since,

first of all, the treatment

options have changed

substantially.

H.I.V./AIDS is not a death

sentence.

People are learning to live

with H.I.V./AIDS, and people

are less afraid.

So, whereas once healthcare

practitioners were even

reluctant to treat people,

now they can access those

services.

So we don't need to have that

discreet program, but in its

day, that was a really

important part of getting

to a new place with H.I.V./AIDS.

We had an H.I.V./AIDS

Day Treatment Program that we

operated, and, again, that

program no longer exists,

but that's what

the not-for-profit communities

do.

They're very nimble because

needs are always changing

and evolving, and we're always

there for the folks who are

struggling.

We figure it out.

>> And we've had success.

We can count that as a success

that we no longer need some

of these programs, that we've

sort of graduated to different

types of programming.

>> You know, I did a homeless

story many, many years ago,

and it was a little kid

who ended up in a homeless

shelter, and I said, you know,

"Do people care?"

He goes, "People care, but not

enough people care," and this

minister that I was dealing

with, he said, "You know,

people drive by, and they see

a homeless person there

and they see a homeless person

there, and they just get on

with their lives," but how do we

get beyond that where we get

individuals, corporations,

governments --

All of these people are members

of our society.

We don't help them, it drags

down our society collectively.

So how do we get people to

kind of get a different

mind-set about this, Betty?

>> We find our corporate

partners are really good at this

because they will sometimes

galvanize their employees

to come out and work on projects

with our not-for-profit

partners.

We did a lot of work during

Superstorm Sandy recovery

with construction work, using

some of the folks in our

YouthBuild and VetsBuild Program

to help reconstruct houses,

but also bringing in teams

of corporate volunteers

to do that

muck-and-gut-and-grout work,

and once they start...

>> Mm-hmm.

>> ...then they're enchanted

by volunteering and will

look for more opportunities.

>> And I think that

the faith-based community

has a role to play there, too.

I mean, our name is

Catholic Charities, so we always

say charity is really the gift

that's twice blessed because

you bless both the giver

and the receiver.

It's the giver that always says

afterward, "I got more from that

than I really gave.

I wish I could do more."

>> Right.

>> And so I think we need

to continue to arouse that

sentiment in the hearts

of people.

>> And it would be good to have

a little bit more news-media

coverage about the good things

that are being done, too.

>> Yes! Yes! Bravo!

[ Laughs ]

>> I've covered so many

hit-and-runs and murders

in my life that I can do without

those, and there are such good

stories going on out there,

and if they got more coverage,

maybe people would appreciate

the help that people give

and how it makes a difference

in people's lives and pursue

this in another way.

>> Right.

And there are great stories

playing out every day through

United Way, through

Catholic Charities, through

so many organizations on

Long Island, and, you know,

our approach to charities is,

you know, we know what

the eligibility criteria are

for all our programs.

We respect that, we honor it,

we abide by all the rules

and regulations, but at the end

of the day, the person is

before us, and we need to walk

with them on their journey,

whether it fits into

the criteria or not, and

one by one, one person at

a time, case by case, we need

to try to get them to reimagine

the future for themselves.

>> And, Betty, from United Way's

perspective, what would you like

to see done from the community,

from government?

How could more people get behind

the work that you're doing?

>> I think that stepping up

and saying, "I can be

a volunteer" at lots of

different levels.

It doesn't mean that you are

volunteering once a week.

It may be a few times a year.

Get involved.

Certainly contribute where

you see your dollars working

well, and it's our challenge

to show you how well our dollars

are spread, what we're doing,

and how many lives we're helping

to turn around.

>> Laura, the same question

to you.

>> One of my dreams is that

somewhere along the way,

there'll be some support

for a comprehensive

case-management service.

Because of the way

the government is structured

and the silos, you know,

we have services for people

with mental illness, people

with addiction and chemical

dependence, for people with

developmental disabilities,

for seniors, for veterans,

and so a comprehensive

case-management approach.

I think that could help people

navigate, because many people

can benefit from a number

of different services, and so it

seems a little bit inefficient

the way it's structured

right now, so...

And that comprehensive

case management would be

a dream.

>> In 10 seconds each, are you

hopeful that people will rise

to the occasion going forward?

Betty?

>> Absolutely.

We have infinite faith in

the power of human...

>> [ Laughs ]

>> ...human power of giving.

>> Yes.

>> Laura?

>> Well, the same thing.

I mean, I'm an eternal

optimist, and, yeah, I always

have faith and hope, and,

you know, we do what we can,

and we let the Lord do

the rest.

[ Laughs ]

>> Okay. All right.

Well, listen.

Thank you so much for being

with us, Betty and Laura.

That wraps up our conversation

on economic distress on

Long Island.

To learn more about the

"Chasing the Dream" Initiative,

please visit

chasingthedreamproject.org.

And for more on the

"Long Island Business Report,"

log on to our website.

You can also find us on Facebook

and join the conversation

on Twitter.

I'm Jim Paymar.

Thank you for joining us

for this edition of the

"Long Island Business Report,"

and we'll see you next time.

>> Funding for the

"Long Island Business Report"

has been provided by...

The Rauch Foundation

and by the JPB Foundation

and the Ford Foundation.

♪♪