JCCGCI was honored to welcome Dr. Helen Arteaga Landaverde, MPH, PhD, Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services of New York City, along with Adrian Gonzalez, Senior Advisor, to our Coney Island office on July 1st for an in-depth site visit spanning nearly every corner of the organization.

Upon arriving, the Deputy Mayor and Senior Advisor Gonzalez were greeted by Executive Director Rabbi Wiener and our team of program directors, who sat down with them to provide a comprehensive view of JCCGCI. Rabbi Wiener discussed the history of the organization, gave a briefing of our mission and goals, and laid out a vision for our future.

In the more than five decades since its founding, JCCGCI has grown from a local Coney Island institution into one of the largest social service providers in New York City, one that a wide range of New Yorkers now rely on at some of their most challenging moments. Today, that work reaches communities all across New York City, with programs designed to meet peoples’ evolving needs at every stage of life. It was this purpose, to advocate for the needs of New Yorkers in need of support, that compelled the Deputy Mayor to come see firsthand the people and systems behind the impact and get to know our organization. 

During the visit, Deputy Mayor Landaverde and Senior Advisor Gonzalez heard from our JCCGCI program directors for a walkthrough of the organization’s full range of care, from services for Holocaust survivors, to job placement programs, community safety initiatives, and after-school programming across the city. Rather than a tour of a single site, the visit was structured as a series of focused conversations, giving the Deputy Mayor and her team a direct line to the people running these programs day in and day out, and giving our program directors a chance to platform their needs at the highest levels of city government.

These conversations provided a deeper understanding of the scope of JCCGCI’s work, and equally importantly, highlighted the value of a direct line of communication between city leadership and outspoken community members who understand the needs of those being represented. Program directors spoke candidly about the challenges their communities face, the gaps they work every day to close, and the partnerships that make their work possible. Conversations like these are essential to making sure the needs of every New Yorker are being heard and addressed, and that city government stays connected to the challenges and lives of the people it serves.

For JCCGCI, the visit was more than a formality; it was a recognition of the role that the organization has built over fifty three years, not just as a service provider, but as a trusted messenger between the communities it serves and the systems that support them. As New York City continues to navigate rising needs across nearly every area of social services, partnerships like this one are what allow that need to be met with urgency and care. 

Executive Director Rabbi Wiener expressed his gratitude for the Deputy Mayor’s time and attention, noting that “visits like this one strengthen the vital relationship between JCCGCI and city government, a relationship built on decades of collaboration in service of New Yorkers.”

As JCCGCI looks ahead, this visit serves as both an affirmation of the work already being done and a reminder of the work still to come. We are deeply grateful to Deputy Mayor Landaverde and Senior Advisor Gonzalez for taking the time to see our programs up close, and we look forward to continuing this partnership as we work together to serve New Yorkers at every stage of life.

👉 Want to learn more about JCCGCI’s programs? Visit JCCGCI.ORG