NJCDC's 29th Gala Ad Journal

Wednesday, November 8, 2023 Westmount Country Club 728 Rifle Camp Road Woodland Park, New Jersey Cocktail Reception at 6:00 pm Dinner and Program at 7:00 pm

Gala Underwriter

29 Years of Creating Opportunities to Transform Lives

Honorees

Ron Ladell Senior Vice President AvalonBay Communities Passaic County Board of County Commissioners

Gala Underwriter

WELCOME TO

NJCDC’s Twenty-Ninth Anniversary Gala!

CONTENTS 3

EVENT PROGRAM

5 FOUNDER & CEO’S LETTER 6 HONOREES: Ron Ladell AvalonBay Communities Passaic County Board of County Commissioners 9 ABOUT NJCDC 20 OUR ADVERTISERS Our Compete for Life program’s marching band performed at JFK High School’s homecoming game at Hinchliffe Stadium

NJCDC BOARD OF TRUSTEES Martin Vergara II Chair Morgan Stanley Anthony Coscia Vice Chair Windels Marx David Berninger Treasurer OceanFirst Bank Carline Morrison Secretary BD

Donald F. Buckley TD Bank

Robert Garrison Laborers’ International Union

Eric Daleo Gateway Development Corporation

Robert Guarasci, Ex-Officio NJCDC Founder & CEO

Nita Das

Victor J. Herlinsky, Jr. Sills Cummis

Etta Denk Bank of America Ulises Diaz Horizon

William Pascrell, III Princeton Public Affairs Group Kenyatta Stewart, Esq. City of Newark

32 Spruce Street, Paterson, NJ 07501 Tel: 973-413-1600 njcdc.org New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC) is a non-profit community development and social service agency organized as a public charity under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Ad Journal design by Beth Hyslip. Printed by Ace Reprographics, Paterson, NJ

Our Saturday Youth Arts program offers children classes in drumming, clay sculpting, dance, and arts & crafts

GALA PROGRAM

NJCDC’s Twenty-Ninth Anniversary Gala

Special thanks to all of tonight’s sponsors, attendees, and advertisers for

Welcome Martin Vergara II, Chairman, Board of Trustees New Jersey Community Development Corporation CEO’s Remarks Bob Guarasci, Founder & CEO New Jersey Community Development Corporation

helping to make this

Video Presentation

evening a success!

The Impact of NJCDC Speaker: Ava Dessources Community Charter School of Paterson Speaker: Evelyn “Evie” Rivera Great Falls Youth Center Speaker: Joshua Copeland Barclay Place Resident Presentation to the Honorees Ron Ladell AvalonBay Communities Passaic County Board of County Commissioners Musical Performance Anointed Friends Dinner Raffle & Closing Remarks

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In March, neighborhood residents joined NJCDC to unveil the new Strategic Plan for the neighborhood we serve

FOUNDER & CEO’S LETTER

I Want to Welcome And Thank You For the past 29 years, New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC) has worked to change the landscape in the City of Paterson. We focus our work on a 95-block area we call the Great Falls Neighborhood, with the majestic Great Falls at its center. Our bold vision is that all 8,000 children living or going to school in our neighborhood will graduate from high school ready for college and a career.

This year, our work has continued to grow as the need for our programs and services has increased. We’ve never been busier!

Bob Guarasci

NJCDC Founder & CEO

In January, we relaunched the city’s Financial Empowerment Center, providing one-on-one financial counseling. And in March, we released a new resident-led and resident-driven plan for the neighborhood we serve, which we facilitated over the past two years. In July, we cut the ribbon on Barclay Place, 56 units of affordable, healthy housing we developed with lead partner St. Joseph’s Health and CAPC. In September, we officially launched the New Jersey Statewide Student Support Services (NJ4S) Passaic County Hub, which addresses the youth mental health crisis. We’re excited to expand our services and collaborate with students, teachers, families, and community organizations across Passaic County to provide vital prevention and intervention services to all youth in the county.

This year, we also became the lead agency at our fourth Full Service Community School—International High School. We’re about to open the expansion to our Great Falls Youth Center, and, in 2024, we’ll break ground on a new affordable housing development.

While we have accomplished a great deal over these 29 years, there is much more work to be done. The transformational change we are pursuing will take more time, but because of committed partners like you, change is happening each and every day. We draw inspiration from your support—and plan to do more, to help more, and to achieve more in the years ahead.

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HONOREES

Board of County Commissioners Passaic County NJCDC is the proud recipient of significant support from the Passaic County Board of County Commissioners and we are grateful for their support of our work. A great deal of funding has been provided through the County’s Open Space Fund, which has enabled us to create parks, renovate our historic buildings, and develop a master plan for Paterson’s Westside Park—soon slated to undergo a major rehabilitation based on the master plan. Other funding has helped us to serve vulnerable individuals in need of housing.

“

The Passaic County Board

of County Commissioners fights for all of the issues NJCDC cares about, and are a faithful ally as we carry out

”

our mission.

Bob Guarasci NJCDC Founder & CEO

The Passaic County Board of County Commissioners is responsible for an annual budget of about $455 million, serving approximately 501,000 residents in 16 municipalities.

Elected members of the Passaic County Board of County Commissioners, who we honor today, are: • Pasquale “Pat” Lepore, Director • John W. Bartlett, Esq., Deputy Director • Terry Duffy • Nicolino Gallo • Bruce James • Cassandra “Sandi” Lazzara • Orlando Cruz

6 NJCDC TWENTY-NINTH ANNIVERSARY GALA

HONOREES

Ronald S. Ladell Senior Vice President, AvalonBay Communities NJCDC is proud to honor Ron Ladell and AvalonBay as our corporate honoree this year. Ron and his associates at AvalonBay have been strong financial supporters of our work, but they also undertake a major community service project on our behalf every year. This year, nearly 100 AvalonBay employees helped us to clean and beautify both campuses of our charter school as well as the Great Falls, and in the past have helped us improve our youth center and other facilities.

“

We salute Ron Ladell and

AvalonBay for their steadfast support of our work to create opportunities to transform lives for Paterson children and

”

families.

Bob Guarasci

NJCDC Founder & CEO

As AvalonBay’s Senior Vice President and lead executive for New Jersey, Ron Ladell oversees all development activities throughout the state.

Mr. Ladell is based in the company’s Westfield office and focuses on developing premier residential and mixed-use communities. Over the last few years, AvalonBay has built communities located in Somerville, Old Bridge, Teaneck, Piscataway, Boonton, Maplewood, Edgewater, Princeton, Bloomfield, Union, Roseland, Somerset, Wharton, Bloomingdale, Wood-Ridge, Hackensack, North Bergen, West Long Branch, Tinton Falls, Lyndhurst and Lawrenceville. AvalonBay is currently building communities in Montville, Princeton and West Windsor.

Mr. Ladell serves as the Chair of the Rutgers Center for Real Estate Executive Committee where, working with other members, he is planning the Center’s activities and developing an undergraduate and graduate level curriculum for the next generation of real estate leaders. Mr. Ladell is an Adjunct Professor at the Rutgers Business School, teaching both Real Estate Law and Real Estate Development and recently received the Dean’s Meritorious Award for PTL Teaching. Mr. Ladell also serves as a Rutgers University Senator representing the Rutgers University Alumni Association.

Mr. Ladell recently received the Visionary in Partnership Award from Rutgers Hillel, bestowed for strong moral character, compassion, and devotion to his students and community. He also received the Leadership Excellence Award from Monmouth University’s Kislak Real Estate Institute, conferred annually upon an outstanding individual for distinctive contributions to the State and Nation through a career in real estate.

Mr. Ladell was honored as the Humanitarian of the Year by The Center for Great Expectations and also serves on their Board of Directors. He serves on the NJ State Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

NJCDC TWENTY-NINTH ANNIVERSARY GALA 7

Our students enjoy a Dr. Seuss story read by Senator Nellie Pou on Read Across America Day

ABOUT NJCDC

Inspiring and empowering people with opportunities to transform their lives …

New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC) is a non-profit community development and social service agency headquartered in the City of Paterson with a mission of creating opportunities to transform lives.

NJCDC was created in 1994 and has 29 years of experience in the areas of education, youth development, affordable/supportive housing, and community building. Starting with two employees, NJCDC has grown into a $19 million agency employing more than 140 individuals performing a wide variety of services that collectively reach more than 4,000 children, teens, and families each day.

Our vision is that all 8,000 children living or going to school in our neighborhood will graduate from high school ready for college and a career. To that end, we continue to expand our substantial base of successful programs for children and families, to grow our pipeline of services to address emerging and often emergent needs, and to expand our brick and mortar work to create additional affordable housing and community facilities.

We have adopted a place-based approach to community development targeting the Great Falls Neighborhood, a 95-block area with the Great Falls of the Passaic River as its epicenter. The residents of the Great Falls Neighborhood are diverse in race, religion, nationality, and need. Overall, it is a poor neighborhood—the median household income is just over one-third of the state’s, and only 11% of residents have earned a college degree— but it is also a neighborhood with a rich history and a great deal of hope and promise.

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A proud eighth-grade graduate of our Community Charter School of Paterson (CCSP)!

ABOUT NJCDC

Education, Another Word for Opportunity

We offer no-cost, high-quality education for Paterson students from preschool through twelfth grade. We believe that education is another word for opportunity, and that our efforts to instill a love of learning and to promote student success will help the students we educate to ultimately reach their greatest potential. It’s a responsibility that we take very seriously, and we do it with a host of enthusiastic partners—from parents to community organizations and stakeholders.

NJCDC founded and supports the operation of three schools: Our Paterson Family Center preschool—which celebrated its 20th anniversary this September— provides 105 children with an evidence-based curriculum delivered by highly qualified staff in order to promote learning among our youngest students.

The preschool also offers support to the entire family through before-school and after-school programming, as well as specialized staff who connect families to vital resources.

CCSP also has a strong connection to the Paterson community, drawing on a variety of resources to help students and families succeed.

Garrett Morgan Academy, a high school with nearly 175 students in grades 9-12, places a special focus on science, technology, engineering, and math. We partnered with the Paterson school district to open Garrett Morgan in 2000 and have since graduated hundreds of students who have gone on to college and successful careers. Named for the turn-of-the-century African-American inventor of the traffic light—patented 100 years ago this month—the school provides students with a curriculum that makes STEM instruction relevant and accessible.

The Community Charter School of Paterson (CCSP) was founded by NJCDC 15 years ago to help advance educational choice in Paterson while promoting positive youth development and strengthening families. CCSP opened in 2008 as a K-3 school serving 400 students and now serves 900+ students in grades K-8 across two campuses.

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Our Paterson Youth Council toured Harvard University with program alum Isabela Gonzalez, Harvard ‘26

ABOUT NJCDC

Fostering The Next Generation of Engaged Citizens

In helping to foster the next generation of engaged Paterson citizens, NJCDC reaches beyond the classroom. We invest in the future leaders of our community at their individual points of development—particularly during after-school programming, in our Youth Center and our Teen Centers, and through comprehensive youth leadership initiatives. By doing so, we are consistently investing in the human potential of the great City of Paterson.

We also sponsor an array of summer programs and comprehensive Teen Centers at four area high schools to promote healthy lifestyles, and we operate four Full-Service Community Schools programs at Paterson’s School #5, the Joseph A. Taub School, International High School, and JFK High School. The NJ4S Passaic County Hub promotes mental health wellbeing through prevention and mental health intervention services to youth throughout the county.

Our youth development programs include our Paterson Youth Council, a year-long leadership development program that is the premier voice for the city’s young people; our Great Falls Youth Center, which provides a safe place for hundreds of neighborhood teens to study, learn, and enjoy recreational activities; and our two AmeriCorps national service programs: the Paterson Community Schools Corps, whose members work in several Paterson schools to eliminate barriers to academic achievement, and the Paterson Public Health Corps, whose members provide mental health resources to at-risk students and families.

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With partner St. Joseph’s Health and CAPC, we opened BarclayPaterson Place Apartments—56 of healthy, affordable housing Family Centerunits student enjoying the playground

ABOUT NJCDC

Affordable Housing For Our Most Vulnerable Residents

We believe having a place to call home is one of the most fundamental human rights and is necessary to foster stability and personal growth.

NJCDC prides itself on providing affordable and supportive housing in Paterson and the surrounding area to scores of vulnerable individuals and families who need it most.

also open two new small multifamily buildings in the new year, and will break ground on a new affordable mixed-use building in our neighborhood.

We build and operate housing with on-site social services for individuals with special needs including those who are homeless, mentally ill, those with developmental disabilities, and youth who are homeless or aging out of the foster care system.

Our goal is to offer those we serve a safe, decent, and affordable place to call home, to provide assistance in navigating everyday challenges, and, most importantly, to instill hope, confidence, and optimism. These programs not only provide opportunities to transform individual lives, but also serve as catalysts to help build social stability and safer neighborhoods.

To date, we have built more than 200 units of affordable and supportive housing. We just opened Barclay Place, in partnership with St. Joseph’s Health and New Jersey Community Capital, which provides 56 units of affordable “healthy home” housing for hard-working Patersonians. We will

NJCDC TWENTY-NINTH ANNIVERSARY GALA 15

Dedicated volunteers from AvalonBay cleaned and beautified the Great Falls and both CCSP campuses this summer

ABOUT NJCDC

Community Building For A Brighter Paterson

Since 1994, NJCDC has taken a lead role in rebuilding and strengthening our community through the empowerment of—and in partnership with—those who live and work in our neighborhood.

example of a comeback community by bringing people together, working on common interests, and always advocating for change.

In March, we facilitated the development of a new neighborhood plan—written hand-in-hand with local residents and other stakeholders—to guide our work over the next decade. Since 2014, our Neighborhood Help Center has served as a one-stop shop for neighborhood residents to receive assistance on a broad range of topics, including housing, immigration, job readiness, education, and financial literacy.

We also host a variety of educational workshops, community forums, and family-friendly events to provide those we serve with valuable information and life-changing resources. This year, we relaunched the City of Paterson’s Financial Empowerment Center, helping Paterson residents to achieve financial stability.

We also regularly carry out neighborhood cleanups and have built 15 playgrounds and community gardens to help revitalize our neighborhood.

With the help of our friends and partners, we’ll continue to make the Great Falls Neighborhood an

NJCDC TWENTY-NINTH ANNIVERSARY GALA 17

We celebrated the 20th Anniversary of our headquarters—including with a cake in the likeness of 32 Spruce Street!

ABOUT NJCDC

We intend to continue serving as a powerful agent of change…

In celebrating our 29th Anniversary, we are proud to honor Ron Ladell, Senior Vice President at AvalonBay Communities and a longtime supporter of our work. AvalonBay employees have been volunteering with NJCDC for many years to revitalize the Great Falls Neighborhood by building gardens and clearing debris, as well as donating bikes for our students and toys for many of our Annual Holiday Toy Drives.

We are also delighted to honor the Passaic County Board of County Commissioners, a group of dedicated public servants who have collectively helped to advance NJCDC’s objectives in countless ways over the past 29 years.

Without a doubt, our ability to get things done is thanks in part to special friends like Ron Ladell, AvalonBay, and the Passaic County Board of County Commissioners, who embrace our mission and help however and wherever they can.

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Celebration Sponsor Sponsor Celebration

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Anniversary Sponsor

Paterson’s Great Falls National Historical Park

NJCDC extends its sincere gratitude to the sponsors below for their generous support.

To our many friends and advertisers who helped make this evening a success, WE THANK YOU! GALA UNDERWRITER: The Daleo Family ANNIVERSARY LEVEL: BD CELEBRATION LEVEL: AvalonBay Communities • Horizon • M&T Bank Railroad Construction Company • Valley Bank FRIEND LEVEL: Broadridge Financial Solutions • Marilyn Clark Enterprise Community Partners • Federal Home Loan Bank of NY Lakeland Bank • PNC Bank • Practical LLC • PSE&G • TD Bank Windels Marx SUPPORTER LEVEL: A rc Building Partners • Brach Eichler • Brown & Brown Insurance Langan • NJCDC Supportive Housing • Optimum Business PSE&G • Passaic County Community College • Reliable Benefits Sills Cummis • St. Joseph’s Health