JESPY HOUSE IN FOREFRONT OF ADVOCACY FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J., July 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — JESPY House, long one of New Jersey’s leading nonprofit organizations finding housing solutions for adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, has strengthened its advocacy efforts for affordable housing for one of the State’s most vulnerable communities.

“Lack of affordable housing threatens the ability of adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities to maintain the independence that they work hard to attain. Housing is critical for adults with IDD. Escalating rents outpace salaries and increase this community’s demand for affordable housing throughout New Jersey,” said Audrey Winkler, the Executive Director for JESPY House. “Without significant political and societal change, the hope of independent living becomes more and more elusive for so many in need.”

Winkler added, “JESPY has been at the forefront of advancing independence for adults with disabilities throughout our 45 year history. We currently serve over 300 clients. Locating affordable housing is increasingly becoming a key component of our work. There isn’t a day that goes by when we don’t receive a request for our services from family members who simply don’t know where else to go for help. Like so many other social service organizations, we are beyond our capacity.”

According to The Urban Institute, “millions of people living in the United States are feeling the effects of one of the worst affordable housing crises in a generation, but for the growing number of people with disabilities, finding and retaining quality housing they can afford is even more challenging. This group faces unique barriers related to housing affordability, accessibility, and the ability to receive supportive services in their own homes.”

More locally, The Star-Ledger recently reported that “thousands of New Jerseyans with disabilities are waiting seven to ten years to access independent living opportunities, oftentimes leading to placement in nursing homes without proper care because no other options exist.”

JESPY House works extensively with statewide advocacy groups to raise awareness about the unprecedented lack of affordable housing for the IDD community. Winkler serves on the Board of the New Jersey Association of Community Providers whose primary mission is to advocate on behalf of its membership to elected officials, legislators, and the public. Additionally, members of the JESPY staff collaborate regularly with their counterparts at other agencies to share best practices about all areas related to independent living.

Recently, Winkler and her staff took JESPY clients to New Jersey’s capitol, Trenton, to attend committee hearings and meet with legislators from throughout the State. In addition to advocating for the needs of JESPY clients and others with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, these visits served as an opportunity for public officials to meet their IDD constituents face-to-face, as well as to educate the clients about the legislative process.

JESPY has launched its Go Big for JESPY initiative to respond to the urgent residential, service, and program needs of its clients with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. This initiative will allow JESPY to create the proposed JESPY Center and The Hub. The JESPY Center is designed to be a fully accessible building that will offer expanded residential opportunities for adults with IDD including aging in place for older clients and affordably-priced units for clients of all ages. This Center plans to enhance JESPY’s core services and programs including vocational and work readiness, education and training, health and wellness, clinical and behavioral supports, and a library and technology center. The Hub is also designed as a fully-accessible building that will create residential units for young adult clients transitioning to living independently and provide programs and services including education and training, a library and technology center, and more.

“Clients have already had to leave JESPY because they could not afford their escalating rents in South Orange,” says Winkler. “When clients are forced to leave JESPY, they lose not only their housing, but also their jobs, friends, clinical services, routines, programs, services, and independence. Our clients work hard to develop the skills they need to live independently. They do not want to sacrifice all that they have achieved because they cannot afford their monthly rents. Our Go Big initiative seeks to create affordably-priced housing options for our clients so they can continue to live and thrive in a community that they love and have lived in for decades. This is home.”

“I have a job that I really enjoy,” says JESPY client Jill T., who is employed by Prudential. “But no matter how hard I work, it’s sometimes hard to keep up with bills and rent that keeps going up. I also think a lot about how my finances will be once I retire.”

The Go Big for JESPY initiative has garnered significant philanthropic support. In July 2023, philanthropists Toby and Leon Cooperman launched a $13.25 million grant challenge to support Go Big and establish the Cooperman Family Campus at JESPY House. Many donors have already stepped up and made major pledges and more continue to declare significant support to meet the challenge and to realize this vision.

When launching the challenge, Leon Cooperman stated, “JESPY House has a thoughtful, achievable vision and a strong entrepreneurial sense. This is exactly the type of organization we like to support.” He added, “Now they are working strategically to build on their achievements and secure the future. They work smart, with heart. And the dignity, affirmation, and independence they teach their clients is priceless.”

Clients and their families have overwhelmingly embraced and advocated for the Go Big initiative, recognizing that it will help JESPY clients remain independent for decades to come. Local residents have also launched a social media campaign that has attracted significant support for the development of The JESPY Center and their JESPY neighbors.

“I am so excited about the prospect of the Go Big For JESPY initiative and the new JESPY Center that is being proposed,” said Maria Carroll whose son has been a JESPY client for ten years. “It will allow so many more people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities to live full and independent lives. JESPY is the miracle for so many people like my son. It means the world to me to know that JESPY is going to be there for him when my husband and I are not around anymore.”

“JESPY has been an essential partner for my son for more than half of his life,” said Michael Levinson. “This new Center will allow him, and so many others like him, to age in place with dignity. Isn’t that what we all want for our children?”

“JESPY has provided our son with a home, a vocation, a social circle and various life skills that have allowed him to live independently for more than two decades,” said George and Cookie Nirenberg. “Their new Center will allow JESPY to expand its programs, provide additional housing and most importantly, for our son, our family and so many like him, the ability to age in place with JESPY continuing to provide the safety net that has been a stable part of our son’s life for as long as he can remember.”

“My son and his friends have found hope in The JESPY Center, which will provide them with the skills they need to navigate an often unwelcoming world,” said Monica Ward. “[T]he JESPY Center will provide affordable housing to clients, like my son, so that they can pay their rents and daily expenses and live in the community they love. Housing is vital because it is the cornerstone of independence.”

JESPY House is currently going through South Orange’s Planning Board process for The JESPY Center and The Hub. JESPY hopes to receive approvals soon for this urgently needed residential, program, and service space that would help respond to New Jersey’s need for increased housing that adults with IDD can afford.

ABOUT JESPY HOUSE

JESPY House is a non-profit organization that has provided comprehensive services and programs to help adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities to live independently in South Orange for over 45 years. More than three hundred clients, age 18 and up, are supported in various areas along their journey to independence and leading fulfilling lives. Clients come from across New Jersey and throughout the United States to build lives in a community they can call their own. JESPY has received numerous commendations from State officials and colleagues in the IDD community.

JESPY’s services and programs include Day Habilitation, Engagement & Enrichment programs, Young Adult Transitions Services, Clinical & Behavioral Support Services, Athletics & Fitness, Case Management, Community-Based Supports, Residential options, Aging in Place, and Work Readiness & Employment Engagement services.

For further information about the Go Big for JESPY initiative, please go to: https://jespyhouse.org/GoBig or contact Amy Engel, Director of Development, Marketing & Community Relations at 973-437-3770 or [email protected]. For press-related inquiries, email Sonya Kimble-Ellis, Senior Media and Communications Specialist, at [email protected].

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:

SONYA KIMBLE-ELLIS, (973) 762-6909 Ext. 308 or

[email protected]

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