Princeton NJ Non-Profit Press Releases

Grant from Community Foundation of New Jersey Will Support Crisis Ministry’s Utilities Assistance Program

(TRENTON)—The Crisis Ministry was awarded a grant of $5,000 from the Mercer Foundation of the Community Foundation of New Jersey. The grant will help struggling households to avoid the loss of vital utilities such as electricity, water, and heat. Half of the award for the Crisis Ministry’s 2012 Utilities Assistance program, $2,500, will provide aid specifically to residents of Robbinsville.

“Utility assistance is a crucial component of our organization’s mission,” said Crisis Ministry executive director Carolyn Biondi. “Family stability, academic achievement, work productivity, and mental and physical health suffer when heat, light and water are lost. In some cases, homelessness can occur as a result of utilities loss. With this support of our Utilities Assistance program, the Community Foundation of New Jersey will help families and individuals across all of Mercer County to remain stably housed.”

In 2011 the Crisis Ministry helped 211 households in Mercer County to restore service or avert shut-off of a utility, with an average assistance level of $379. Clients who receive assistance with their utilities from the Crisis Ministry are required to provide a portion of the past-due balance. Vanessa Lagares, the Crisis Ministry’s Utility Assistance Coordinator, reported that in April the organization received 166 requests for assistance and another 40 requests as of May 4.

A program of the 501(c)3 non-profit Princeton Outreach Projects, Inc., the Crisis Ministry partners with the community to achieve stability for neighbors in need, serving some 1,300 households each month through hunger prevention, homelessness prevention, and workforce development. It partners with the community nursing program of Capital Health System to hold free, bi-monthly health screenings hosted by First Presbyterian Church of Trenton. It also provides bi-lingual nutrition education classes led by a certified nutritionist through the Rutgers Extension Service. The Crisis Ministry counts among its active partners more than 60 congregations of different faiths, businesses, private foundations, schools and colleges, hundreds of volunteers and individual donors, and the public sector. Visit thecrisisministry.org or call 609-396-9355.

Visit cfnj.org for more information on the Community Foundation of New Jersey.