The next meeting of CoFiA members and friends will be on Thursday evening, March 12, at 7:00 p.m. Suggestions for the agenda may be sent to co-chair Ruth Swinney (ruthswinney@gmail.com). Reports will be presented on the many activities CoFiA is currently engaged in, including a new after-school program in Palisades Park, participation in OSHA training by CoFiA workers organized by staff member Alberto Oliart, ongoing ESL programs at the Palisades Park Library, Saturday night “delegados” meetings led by Alberto, and more. These meetings are open to all. Please join us! For information about the place of the meeting, contact Ruth Swinney.
The delegados had a great meeting on January 25, 2020. Much of the discussion concerned the upcoming OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) training to which a number of the members are going. Trainers from Make the Road New Jersey attended the meeting to explain the 30-hour training program and assist the participants in completing the contract forms.
People who successfully complete the program will receive official OSHA certificates. These are very valuable to workers because employers are eager to find workers who have them, indicating that they have been well-trained and the employer will not be liable in case of injuries on the job. A number of the participants completed the forms and paid their deposits. CoFiA will also provide some financial assistance.
CoFiA is happy to report that in 2019 CoFiA received unusually generous donations from our members and friends. These are helping us cover small stipends for our part-time staff members, Angelica Martinez, the Social Services coordinator; and Alberto Oliart, our community organizer who manages the delegados program that meets on Saturday nights. We also respond as possible to needs of Palisades Park community members that are brought to our attention. Most recently we have assisted a local family in sending the body of a family member back to Guatemala for burial.
Other initiatives, described elsewhere in this web site, include providing scholarships for participation in OSHA training programs; providing free ESL classes on Tuesday nights at the Palisades Park library; helping to recover wages that have been earned but not paid; and our new after-school program, held in conjunction with the Palisades Park Board of Education.
Each of our initiatives could be expanded if we had more income. Recently our fund raising committee has revised our appeals letter, which will be appearing soon in your mail box. A mailing party will be held on Tuesday, February 4, at 1:00 p.m., at the home of co-chair Carolyn Sobering. Please contribute generously as you are able–even before the letter arrives, if you wish!
We could also use more volunteers to work on the appeal. Just let us know if you want to help, and we’ll send you the particulars. It’s a good cause, but also a lot of fun!
A lively and committed group of volunteers has undertaken an ongoing after-school program, in conjunction with the Palisades Park school system, that is focusing on helping immigrant children improve English language skills, as well as literacy. The program is also helping immigrant high school students in Pal Park learn how to apply to college. As interest in the programs expands, CoFiA is looking for more volunteers. For more information, send us a note (info@communityoffriendsinaction.org) or call the CoFiA number (201-598-2253) and leave a message for Angelica.
Under the leadership of former part-time community organizer, Sayda Tuanama, CoFiA organized interested workers into a group that began meeting on Saturday nights, about once a month. Calling itself the delegados, the group met at local restaurants and enjoyed having a light meal together, sharing information about what is going on in their lives and in the community in general, and discussing the goals and programs of CoFiA. In the fall of 2019, CoFiA hired Alberto Oliart to work with this group and it has continued with renewed energy and additional members.
Alberto and Co-Chair Carolyn
CoFiA is working closely with other immigrants rights groups in New Jersey, especially the NJ Alliance for Immigrant Justice (NJAIJ).
This photo shows our past-chair, Margaret White, our 2019 intern LeAnne Drum, and our part-time social services coordinator Angelica Martinez. Both Margaret and Angelica have been involved with CoFiA for several years and are well-known to the members of the organization. Angelica lives in Palisades Park and is our eyes and ears on the streets of the town, helping us to understand the issues that many immigrants face when trying to make their way in a challenging new environment.
We are happy to report that LeAnne Drum, our summer intern in 2018, returned to work with us part of the summer of 2019. She picked up where she left off the year before, especially focussing on working with the Saturday night group (“delegados“). Unfortunately she was only able to be here until July 23, when she left to study in Chile.
in 2018 LeAnne created an excellent guide highlighting where people new to this country can find local resources, especially those that serve a Spanish-speaking and perhaps undocumented population. We distributed it widely in 2018 and 2019 and it is still available.
We are also delighted to announce the appointment of Alberto Oliart who is picking up LeAnne’s work with the Saturday night group, the delegados. Alberto is a student at William Paterson University, where he studies with CoFiA member Kevin Norton who teaches percussion at the college. Kevin discovered that Alberto, who is from Mexico and is fluent in both Spanish and English, has an interest in organizations like CoFiA that are working to improve the lives of people who have recently immigrated to the United States. He introduced him to us, and we were delighted to find that he was interested in and available for working with us and the delegados. He has made important contributions including organizing a group of delegados who completed the 30-hour OSHA training program.
Earlier this year a powerful volcano erupted in Guatemala, destroying many homes and villages. CoFiA quickly voted to send a financial donation to those affected, and a large number of Guatemalans in the Palisades Park area added to the gift. Together we decided to transfer the funds to the sister of one of the long-time members of CoFiA–she lives near the area that was hit. She carefully put the money in her personal bank account and sent us frequent updates on what was happening with the people in the local villages.
Together we decided to hold off on distributing the money until the needs of the people became clear. We recently received word that the immediate needs had been met, and that it would be more helpful to ask our friend to distribute the money when there were longer-term issues that needed to be addressed.
This month–November 11, 2018–at the suggestion of CoFiA and the local Guatemalan contributors, our friend turned the funds over to Caritas Arquidiocesana, a well-respected organization that was already collecting money on behalf of the affected persons.
Just as we were putting together this post, on November 19, the volcano is erupting again! See international news sources for more information.
The Interfaith Worker Justice organization is sponsoring a weekend of action from November 16 – 18, to raise awareness abut Wage Theft and how to combat it.
IWJ points out that Wage Theft costs workers billions of dollars annually. Thousands of workers every day are not paid or fully paid for their honest day of work. IWJ recommends that concerned people call local congresspeople and ask them to support the Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act. For more information, visit www.wagetheft.org or send us an email at info@communityoffriends in action.org.
Our active fund-raising committee has launched our annual fall fund raiser. We are pleased to report that the response has been quite amazing to date. It’s not too late to make your contribution before the end of the year–just send a check payable to CoFiA to us at PO Box 313, Leonia, NJ 07605. And thank you!
CoFiA has been invited to participate again this year in the weekly lunch program offered on Tuesdays during cold weather at the First Presbyterian Church on W. Palisades Boulevard in Palisades Park. We will be making a monthly financial donation this year instead of contributing food–there was always plenty of food in the past.
Pastor Daniel Lee has encouraged us to present programs to the workers during the lunch time. Several Spanish-speaking CoFiA members will offer presentations similar to those provided last year–introduction to CoFiA and its work; how to adapt to life in the United States, including appropriate behavior on the streets, in restaurants, and the like; what to do if you experience wage theft and how CoFiA can help; and more.
We will begin our participation on Tuesday, November 20. Anyone who is interested is welcome to join us about 12 noon in the social hall next to the kitchen (not the dining room) where we will discuss current CoFiA activities and make plans for upcoming presentations to the workers. There will also be a clothing distribution, organized by Carolyn Sobering. Donations of clothing can be dropped off at the Leonia Public Library.
