What kinds of people do you hope to help?

There are two groups we focus on. First, women and children who are survivors of domestic abuse who do not have the means to make it on their own. The women we are looking for are typically working, but in jobs that do not offer the salaries necessary for independent living. They are trying to rebuild their lives and the lives of their children, but face educational and childcare issues as well as the pressures of day to day expenses and time constraints.

Second, high school students in foster care who have the desire and capability to attend college. They are very able, intellectually competent teens who have little chance, without our help, of successfully completing higher education. We believe mentoring to help handle the social situations along with the resources to obtain the needed “extras” to attend college are crucial to their success.

Why do you believe you can achieve your goals, and who else is helping you?

We have some wonderful people and organizations that have given us their support and strongly believe that continuing collaboration will help us to build.

The domestic violence initiative we established through Easter Seals and have continued under the auspices of OF HOME, FAMILY AND FUTURE continues to work very well. The Westchester house was opened to help survivors of domestic abuse successfully, independently establish themselves in society.

Additionally, we have recently established a partnership with Safe Space in Manhattan to provide comprehensive grants for a select number of families in a program called Safe Passage. This represents an expansion of the kinds of support offered to the women in the Westchester house. We believe working with Safe Space offers a way to expand the scope of the program by identifying appropriate recipients as well as effectively putting the money where it is needed, without adding to OHFF administrative costs.

The student initiative has also received some impressive support. Dr. Jeremy Kohomban, President and CEO of The Children's Village, a well-respected residential treatment center in NY, has worked with us to develop the program for grants for college bound teens. In 2007, this program was expanded to include another residential treatment center, ABBOTT HOUSE, and in 2008 we began working with Good Shepherd Services in NYC.  Good Shepherd Services is a youth development, education and family service agency that works with teens both in residence and in foster care.  We are delighted to add that Hedge Funds Care has committed the funds to support grants to students from these centers. Hedge Funds Care is a non-profit organization committed to protecting children from abuse and neglect, founded by a group of hedge fund industry professionals in 1998.

Finally, we have some very capable individuals who have pledged their help and support. The Officers and Directors of OF HOME, FAMILY AND FUTURE all bring amazing levels of expertise and professionalism. They serve without pay and are committed to helping us build the charity. There are also many individuals who have given donations of both time and money to help.

Why didn’t you just give the money to an existing charity?

We want more flexibility in varying the grants to meet the needs of individuals than typically exists in a large charity. And as a small charity, we have the pleasure of making sure that the money is truly used strictly for the benefit of the recipients. We also have the ability to be flexible—move away from programs or modify programs that don’t work to those that do work.

How do you expect to grow the work you’re doing?

We want to grow in a manageable way. We need to stay close enough to the grant recipients to make sure that the goals of the grants are being achieved and to be able to modify the types of grants being given as we learn more about how to be effective. As we and the institutions with which we work gain experience with the grants, we believe there is no limit to the level to which we might grow and what can be achieved.