10 OCTOBER 28, 2021 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Adams visits Life’s WORC’s group home
for people with disabilities in Little Neck
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
AACEVEDO@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Brooklyn Borough President Eric
Adams, the front-running candidate
for mayor of New York City, visited
Life’s WORC group home in Little Neck
to learn more about the life changing
services the nonprofi t provides for
individuals with disabilities and their
families.
On Saturday, Oct. 23, Adams joined
Life’s WORC’s Founder and Honorary
Board Member Victoria Schneps,
Life’s WORC CEO Janet Koch, Board
Chairperson Lynne Koufakis and staff
to tour the organization’s fi rst group
home, located at 251-40 Gaskell Rd. in
Little Neck.
The group home is named the
“Geraldo Rivera Home” in honor of
the noted journalist who played an
important role alongside Schneps and
other activists in exposing abuses at
the Willowbrook State School on
Staten Island. Rivera’s reports of
Willowbrook’s infamous history of
mistreating and neglecting thousands
of disabled residents brought about
public outrage, and eventually led to
the facility’s closure, with its residents
relocated to smaller group homes.
In fact, the fi rst residents at the
Geraldo Rivera Home were former
Willowbrook residents.
Life’s WORC is dedicated to supporting
people with intellectual and
developmental disabilities as well as
autism, and has group homes throughout
New York City.
Adams recently received criticism
aft er he said that closing Willowbrook
was a “mistake” during an interview
on “Morning Joe” on MSNBC.
“A few employees harmed those
who were patients at Willowbrook
on Staten Island. There was a reaction
from the advocates to close down
Willowbrook, deinstitutionalize
those who needed around-the-clock
services, but we didn’t balance that
with real programs to give it to them,”
Adams said in that interview.
Adams later clarified through
a spokesperson that while he was
“disturbed by the mistreatment at
Victoria Schneps (r.) and Democratic mayoral candidate Eric Adams (second from r.) tour the Geraldo Rivera
Home. Photo by Gabriele Holtermann
Willowbrook decades ago,” he meant
that “since then, New York has systematically
eliminated mental health beds
that can be greatly benefi cial to those
who need constant care, leaving our
city unable to provide for them,” according
to amNew York Metro.
Schneps, whose daughter Lara had
been a patient at Willowbrook, invited
the Brooklyn borough president to
learn more about Willowbrook and
Life’s WORC.
During his visit Saturday, Adams
again referred to his comments about
Willowbrook, saying that he felt that
aft er the institution closed, the city
and state “did not give support to the
families.”
“I just really felt as though the
city, the state just abandoned those
families with children with special
needs, because behind every child
with special needs is a special parent,”
Adams said. “The challenge of what it
takes — that love and nurturing and
you just want your child to have the
dignity and respect that they deserve,
and that’s what every parent wants.
And I believe in it.”
During his visit at the Rivera home,
which included a tour of the inside
and outdoor facilities, Adams met
with residents of the home and spoke
with staff about the many services
they off er beyond their residential
group home, including behavioral
analysis services, community habilitation,
customized employment services,
day habilitation, school-based
services, respite and family support
services, and trust and financial
services, as well as the programs and
services off ered by its Family Center
for Autism.
The Life’s WORC team spoke with
Adams about the challenges they face,
particularly relating to workforce
shortages.
Adams off ered to set up an advisory
committee to help address some of
these challenges at the city level, if
elected mayor.
“If we could put together a group
like this, a cross section … and just
say, ‘Eric, here are the low hanging
fruits that we can do now, here are
some of the things that we can do later,’
and just start putting us on a pathway,”
Adams said. “We need to be pouring
our resources into those who have
barriers.”
Along with representatives from
Life’s WORC, the event was attended
by InterAgency Council of Developmental
Disabilities Agencies Inc. (IAC)
Executive Director Thomas McAlvanah;
AHRC New York City CEO Marco
R. Damiani; and Quality Services for
the Autism Community (QSAC) NY
Chairperson Yvette Watts.
Disclosure: Victoria Schneps is publisher
of QNS and Schneps Media.
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