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CoFiA has received an unusual number of winter coats and other outerwear. All our friends are grateful but they are most urgently needed by those who have no homes. Thank you! Donations can be left at the Leonia Public Library and Independence Harbor apartments. (Please do not leave them anywhere else! We have very little storage space and individual members cannot transport them.)

This fall CoFiA set a fund-raising goal that was very high for us–$5000! An Anonymous Donor sweetened the pot by offering an additional $1500 if we could raise that amount.

We are very very happy to say that Mr. Anonymous Donor has to get his check book out! As of today, when we received a very generous grant of $2000, we have received $6514 in donations!

We are delighted not just because we will be able to continue and expand our work with these additional funds, but also because these gifts demonstrate that in the midst of what often seems like universal mean-spiritedness in our national discourse, many of us–many of you–are eager to show and share a spirit of generosity and inclusiveness. We are still grieving over the death of the young homeless worker, and over the fact that we cannot find a shelter for the others. But with all the concern that is being expressed, through these gifts and through your offers of other kinds of assistance, we believe we will find a miracle somehow during this holiday season.

Many blessings to all, and profound thanks.

 

Even while we mourn a departed friend, we enjoy being together for a hot meal and a little fun. A raffle is always popular! And this year’s prize, a beautiful bicycle, was a big hit–and it came with a helmet, as well.

Grief over the death of a homeless day worker in Palisades Park continues to rock the community. The pastor of St. Michael’s Catholic Church and his congregation had graciously allowed some workers to sleep there on bitterly cold nights, and one morning a young man was found dead. So far we have not seen an official statement of cause of death but it seems obvious no foul play was involved.

Several people have written Letters to the Editor of the RECORD calling the communities’ attention to this totally unnecessary waste of a life. (See below for copies of the letters.) Paulina Banasiak of Wallington writes about a comment by the borough administrator that the men may be potential ‘ax murderers’: “Instead of attempting to work together with the church to address the problem, he is criticizing what the Catholic faith tells us to do…. I commend the Rev. Minhyun Cho for doing the right thing and being an example for the Catholic Church, its parishioners, and the community at large.”

Another letter is by CoFiA member Dorothy Cox: “I would like to commend the Rev. Minhyun Cho and the congregation of St. Michael’s Church in Palisades Park….Father Cho reached out from his faith-based beliefs and acted in accord with the teachings of Jesus….I hope that borough officials will work with Father Cho and not put up obstacles that will be too hard to overcome so that St. Michael’s can continue the social action work the church believes in.”

As of Monday, December 19, 2016, the church is not being allowed to take the workers in. We don’t know how they are surviving–or if they are surviving. Several men participated in our lunch program today and we were all glad that they were able to be with us even if only for a little while, and be warm, fed, and welcomed.

Many people have asked how they can help. Access to local shelter, information about rooms and apartments they can rent, money to buy tickets to return to their home country if they choose that route are all immediate needs. In addition, more Letters to the Editor (LettersToTheEditor@northjersey.com) that will help the community have a better understanding of why people are homeless and what we can all do to resolve the problem would be good.

CoFiA is honored to have the opportunity to work with Father Cho and his congregation, and we are all praying that a solution for this difficult but really very simple problem will soon be found.

We are very sad to report that another day worker was found dead yesterday in Palisades Park. A pastor had allowed a few of the workers to sleep for a few hours in the basement of the Rectory. On the following morning, the worker was found dead.

According to the article by Monsy Alvarado (see below) the cause of death has not been determined. However he had been sleeping out-of-doors for some time, and also had alcohol issues and no health care.

http://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/palisades-park/2016/12/14/homeless-day-laborer-found-dead-pal-park-church-rectory/95446210/

Life in the U.S. is becoming ever more difficult for the people who have come here looking for a better life, or fleeing violence at home. When we ask them if they would rather be back in their home country than enduring these conditions, the answer is nearly always no. When there is work, most are able to save money, send some home, and put some aside for the hard times. But sometimes it is not possible, and they fall into homelessness and alcoholism and life is very difficult and dangerous.

There are no resources for them. A county shelter in Hackensack will take them during the coldest months, but only to sit up in chairs all night. To our knowledge there are no other shelters in Bergen County available for them. Some towns, like North Bergen, have warming centers where people with no heat can go during the day; but we have not found any of these in the Pal Park area.

Other options are also blocked. It is no longer possible to rent a room or an apartment without a Social Security number. Motels are terribly expensive and also require ID. People who once were friends and would share a room tend to turn away when a person has fallen into the life of the homeless. And even churches and pastors who would willingly allow someone who is down and out to spend a night or two in a church basement risk running afoul of local ordinances, as happened in this case.

We know that many people will turn away and just say, “They are illegal. They shouldn’t be here.” But we need to understand that many of the workers are following in the footsteps of previous generations, who have come without papers, found good work, provided well for families in their home countries, and eventually been able to return. The workers have not changed–but the laws have changed. There are no lines to stand in to “wait your turn” for a visa. If you are here already and you return, the wait to be able to apply is as much as 10 years. And if you were here before, you will never be eligible to apply.

At this season, when Christians celebrate the birth of a baby who was born in a manger, we need to think of these others for whom there is no room in any inn. For information on how to help, contact us at info@communityoffriendsinaction.org.

The future of immigration policy and enforcement is more uncertain than ever. Even though the President-elect has backed off on some things–such as building a wall and making Mexico pay for it–we still don’t know what the new administration’s policies and practices will mean for all of us.

Many people are fearful. One of our members told us her daughter, a U.S. citizen college student preparing to become an opthamologist, is afraid her parents and the parents of her friends will be deported. Some people are trying to hide, listening for the dreaded knock on the door.

On December 1, at our Annual Meeting and Dessert Party, Chia Chia Wang of the American Friends Service Committee Immigrants Rights Program will share what they are advising. All are welcome.

Every year as winter approaches CoFiA, along with the Leonia Public Library and the Rotary Club of the Palisades, conducts a cold weather clothing drive. This year the drive begins on Thursday, December 1, 2016. Two boxes will be available for donations at the Leonia Public Library, and this year, for the first time, two boxes will also be placed in Independence Harbor apartment building.

Most needed are coats and jackets that are sturdy, clean and in good condition. Sizes medium and large are good. We are not able to accept clothing for women and children because our storage space is limited.

Thank you!

We have been telling you about “Jose” who recently fell on the job and broke his back. Here is an update from the CoFiA member who has been our liaison with him, and a lovely thank you note from him.

CoFiA, both as individuals and as a group, has been helping “Jose”, a Salvadoran man who broke his back in a fall. His employer has no insurance–but, at CoFiA’s urging, the employer did settle some outstanding wages. Jose is unable to work, and we have provided some food, money and moral support. I recently met with him, and he asked me to share a note with CoFiA. I have translated his comments into English.

From “Jose”:

Hello! Beloved brothers and sisters, I am very grateful to God our Father, and to you, my friends and brothers and sisters. I don’t have the right words to thank you.

I am very happy and grateful to you for the blessing that God has given through you, to me. I am happy because of unspoken things in my heart.

I broke my back and they put me back together with six metal pins. As I’ve said, Don Norman (the CoFiA member who has been working with him), thanks to God and to your hearts, and to the intercession of the Mother of God and of all of us; here I can go forward. A special thanks to you, Don Norman, my friend. Thanks to my brothers and sisters of CoFiA.

God has always taken care of me and has always given me a hand–as you have given me, as one might wish. Your visits are welcome–thanks, and God bless you all. Amen.
November 23, 2016

On December 1, 2016, at 7:15 p.m., CoFiA will hold its Annual Meeting and a Dessert Party, at the Presbyterian Church in Leonia, 181 Fort Lee Road, Leonia, New Jersey. Following the brief business meeting we will hear from a long-time friend, Chia Chia Wang, who is Director of Organizing and Advocacy for the AFSC Immigrants Rights Program. She will review the challenges we are all facing with the incoming administration, and what we can achieve–working together–at state and local levels.

Please contact us at info@cofia-nj.org or 201-833-1737 to let us know you are coming, and what you would like to bring!

We continue to worry about the workers who have no homes as the weather gets increasingly cold. We do what little we can–a hot lunch once a week with some extra food to take out makes Mondays better. And we are glad to know that there are also hot lunches at other churches on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Later in the winter we have a winter coat drive which is very popular, not just with the homeless but with all the workers, who are trying to stretch money earned during the warmer months to cover expenses throughout the winter.

It is miserable to be homeless–and in Palisades Park as in most towns simple things like benches, or steps to sit on, or places to get in out of the cold are off-limits.

What can we do, all of us together? If you have contacts, suggestions, options do let us know. The county shelter will only take them in the very worst weather, for a night or two, and only in the “sit-up” section.

If you want to send money we will put it in a special fund to use when we do find a possible solution, at least for a few. (We can’t give them money directly, because alcohol is always an issue.) Sorry to send such depressing news when there is so much anxiety abroad already. But we may find some answers, if we work together!