On a very hot and sunny Tuesday morning, Greenhope Services for Women Incorporated finally held a groundbreaking ceremony in East Harlem for their most anticipated project, Candace House. The community-orientated celebration, which included various political figures and influential members in the Harlem community and New York City alike, was part of a work-in-progress that began nine years ago, in 1999, according to project founder and Greenhope Executive Director Dr. Anne Elliot.
Dr. Elliot stated her main goal is “to own in Harlem.” She began her mission on a hunt to find vacant property in Harlem after finding out that more than 95 percent of the city’s property was accounted for. She finally secured the plot for just $2. The site that will be transformed into Candace House is located in East Harlem on 119th Street between Pleasant and First avenues, and is expecting its first residents in 2009.
Candace House will serve as an alternative to incarceration for women who are victims of abuse and addiction. Not only will the house accommodate 72 women, it will house their children as well. As part of Greenhope’s dedication to help women reclaim their lives and seek a positive lifestyle post-trauma, the sole purpose of Candace House – accordingly named after the Kandaki line of African queens known for their strength and wisdom – is to repair the community by aiding mothers, grandmothers, and children. The facility will offer rehabilitation and treatment as well as a grandmothers’ program.
“Women will enter the house via court appointment, walk-in, or Child Protective Services,” said Dr. Elliot. Congressman Charles B. Rangel, who was one of the speakers at the monumental event, pointed out the program will affect the entire community because the Candace House is addressing the root. “All the problems that we face in this world, whether it’s war, or oppression – it starts with a mother,” said Rangel. He went on to say, “The people that are going to take advantage of our systems are us. They are our mothers, our sisters; they are our daughters.”
Unity was the theme of the event, as Selma Jackson, board member of Greenhope Services for Women Incorporated since its birth in 1975, commended Dr. Elliot for leading the alumni and future women of Greenhope on the Candace House project. Through Dr. Elliot’s leadership, passion and persistence, she organized Candace House as a community effort and, according to Commissioner Karen Carpenter-Palumbo, “Governor Paterson committed over $40 million to Harlem, Greenhope, and Candace House.”
Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV said the Candace House “is an example of what we can do, brothers and sisters, when we work together.”
In addition to the groundbreaking ceremony of the Candace House, the city will be working together on another issue: youth employment. Congressman Rangel and the New York City Department of Labor are encouraging businesses to use federal tax credits to hire inner-city youth from the ages of 16 to 24 this summer. According to reports, almost one out of every four teenagers is unemployed, and it is that group that is affected the most by the suffering economy.
Rangel pointed out that we are in the “worst recession since the Great Depression” and it’s the city’s youth who are getting the short end of the stick. “Teens want to work, but are not finding jobs.” The city hopes that by offering teens jobs, they can set the precedence for a working-class future while reducing teen pregnancy and providing a sense of responsibility in the city’s teens.
