Mother Cabrini Funding Received
The Rural Outreach Center (ROC) in East Aurora, a nonprofit organization focused on breaking the cycle of rural poverty by accompanying people to self-sufficiency, recently received a $334,025 grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation. With this grant, the ROC will enhance data collection, expand its model of care and further develop the model of care so that it can be replicated, in some form, in other rural areas. The Cabrini funding will result in a package of material that others can use to implement the ROC empowerment model or to strengthen their existing programs of services.
In their grant application titled “The Rural Outreach Center – Eliminating Rural Poverty & Healing from Trauma,” the ROC emphasized how their model of empowerment transforms the lives of families in general, but children in particular. By addressing family needs, the ROC model provides a stable home environment while addressing past childhood traumas. This 2-generation approach breaks the cycle of generational poverty.
“These grants demonstrate our continued commitment to support a wide range of organizations improving the health and well-being of New York’s most vulnerable,” said Alfred F. Kelly, Jr., Chief Executive Officer of Visa and Chair of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation Board.
“We must address the healthcare disparities related to race and income that have only been heightened since the onset of the pandemic,” added Msgr. Gregory Mustaciuolo, Chief Executive Officer of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation. “We honor the legacy of Mother Cabrini by funding activities, programs and initiatives that help bridge gaps in health services, bolster the health outcomes of diverse communities and eliminate barriers to care.”
According to Executive Director Frank Cerny, the Rural Outreach Center has a singular goal: To eliminate poverty in rural southern Western New York.
“There are over 40,000 people in poverty in the rural zip codes from which most of our Participants come,” said Cerny. “But rural poverty is often called the invisible poverty because it is hidden and dispersed across a wide geographic area, making it difficult to provide services, thereby exacerbating the poverty. This grant will enhance the ROC’s ability to provide much-needed services to help our Participants reach their goals. Services range from one-on-one mentoring by volunteers, counseling, career development and family services to transitional housing and transportation procurement. Currently, the ROC has over 150 Participant individuals and families and almost 100 children engaged in the process of empowerment to self-sufficiency.”
For more information on the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, please visit https://cabrinihealth.org. And for information on the Rural Outreach Center, located at 730 Olean Road, please visit https://theroc.co or call (716) 240-2220.
