Mentor A Promise

  Photo Credit: Syda Productions - stock.adobe.com If you are anything like the good folks at Mentor A Promise and its network of partner organizations - and we suspect you are, constant reader - you are concerned with the plight of your fellow New Yorkers, especially those experiencing homelessness. One kind act you may perform is helping to provide for their needs. However, you may wish to contribute in a non-pecuniary fashion - say, a care package. This blog post will discuss what you should include in a care package for homeless New Yorkers as well as the message it sends to its recipient and the community at large.  Should I Give Care Packages To Homeless New Yorkers?  The short answer, of course, is an emphatic YES. Nonetheless, we want to stress that these care packages should be the products of genuine compassion and a desire to end suffering. You should not be performing these otherwise kind acts for money and notoriety - also known as “clout” - on social media p...

Photo Credit: SerPhoto - stock.adobe.com For many children, summer break is a time of excitement and exploration, free from the demands of school and extracurricular activities. But for the less fortunate children of New York City and elsewhere, the summer is a period of anxiety and deprivation. Without the breakfasts and lunches provided to them by their schools, these children will experience food insecurity and, yes, even hunger. This blog post will discuss summertime hunger among homeless New York City children, its prevalence, its impact on developing minds and bodies and how we can assist this vulnerable population.  How Common Is Summertime Hunger Among Homeless Children in New York City?  Before we delve into the numbers, the authors of this blog post would like to state that hunger is not exclusive to the summer months, nor is it constrained merely to young people who lack a safe, reliable place to sleep at night. Indeed, many New Yorkers from low income families expe...

  Photo Credit: rangizzz - stock.adobe.com The official start of summer is only a few weeks away, but it’s already growing quite hot in the streets of New York City. Excessive heat, made worse by the effects of climate change, is not just uncomfortable, it can be deadly, especially for the most vulnerable members of our society. This blog post will discuss the dangers of heat on the homeless population of New York City as well as resources they may use to cool off.  Why Are Extreme Heat Events More Dangerous for Homeless New Yorkers?  Even for the healthiest New Yorkers, extreme heat events tax their physical, mental and emotional well-being. However, certain conditions place some groups in greater danger. Those experiencing homelessness are the most vulnerable, because they often experience multiple risk factors simultaneously. According to the National Integrated Heat Health Information System , these risk factors include, but are not limited to, the following:  In...