THE NEW YORK BAR FOUNDATION AWARDS MORE THAN $580,000 IN CHARITABLE AND EDUCATIONAL GRANTS

ALBANY, NY (05/16/2016)(readMedia)-- Ninety-nine nonprofit programs across New York have received grants totaling more than $580,000 from The New York Bar Foundation this year.

"Contributions enabled us to provide at least one grant to each Judicial District across New York State," notes Lucia Whisenand, who chairs the Grant Committee. "Unfortunately, there is still significant need for resources to provide legal representation to the underserved."

Many of the organizations funded by The Foundation provide essential legal services to low-income individuals. "They impact quality-of-life issues, such as senior homelessness prevention, human trafficking, immigration, veterans programs, wage justice, re-entry and domestic violence," explains John H. Gross, president of The Foundation.

"Programs supporting children and teens include those focusing on children with disabilities, teen dating violence, child sexual abuse and exploitation, transitioning from foster care, broken adoptions, and youth courts," Whisenand states.

Funding for the grants comes from the generous contributions to The Foundation by lawyers, law firms, corporations and others. "The collective impact of The Foundation's donors complements local organizational efforts," explains Whisenand.

New York State Bar Association section and individual gifts make a positive impact on these programs. Through the generosity of the Association's General Practice Section, $25,000 was allocated for multiple pro bono initiatives.

Among the recipients is the Veteran's Pro Bono Project of Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc. The project helps veterans file fully developed claims for Veterans Affairs disability benefits, and assists with other VA issues, such as military discharge upgrades. The project is innovative in that it is based at the VA Medical Center in Canandaigua where veterans can consult with pro bono attorneys at the same location where they receive other veterans services. The project uses Rochester-based volunteer attorneys to serve a rural veteran population in counties with significantly fewer attorneys available to provide pro bono legal services.

"The section believes that this is a productive way to promote pro bono legal efforts by general practice attorneys across the state," states Emily F. Franchina, chair of the General Practice Law Section. "Partnering with The Foundation to assist in fulfilling this need is a good way to help make a difference. The Foundation is familiar with the areas of need that are the focus of nonprofit programs. We are happy to help in increasing their efforts."

"The legal assistance made possible by the grants is often life-changing for the recipients and their families," explains Gross. "Having a voice that is heard makes an impact on their present and their future. As attorneys, we need to be proactive in supporting The Foundation and its grant program."

The organizations receiving grants from The Foundation are:

First Judicial District (Manhattan):

Advocates for Children of New York

Advocates for Justice (A4J)

Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF)

Boys and Girls Republic

Brennan Center for Justice

Catholic Charities Community Services

Center for Family Representation (CFR)

Community Service Society of New York

Correctional Association of New York

Court Appointed Special Advocates, Inc. (CASA) - NYC

Gay Men's Health Crisis

Goddard Riverside Community Center

Housing Conservation Coordinators, Inc. (HCC)

Human Rights First

inMotion Inc.

LatinoJustice PRLDEF

Lawyers Alliance for New York

Lawyers for Children

Legal Action Center

Legal Information for Families Today (LIFT)

Lenox Hill Neighborhood House

MFY Legal Services, Inc.

National Center for Law and Economic Justice

New York Asian Women's Center

New York Center for Law and Justice, Inc.

New York City Bar (City Bar Justice Center)

New York City Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project (AVP)

New York Civil Liberties Union Foundation

New York County Lawyers' Association

New York Foundling Hospital DBA The New York Foundling

New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Inc. (NYLPI)

New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG)

Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation

Partnership for the Homeless

Pro Bono Net, Inc.

Safe Horizon, Inc.

Sakhi for South Asian Women

The Door - A Center of Alternatives, Inc.

The Legal Aid Society

UnLocal, Inc

Urban Justice Center

Volunteers of Legal Service (VOLS)

Youth Represent

Second Judicial District (Kings County):

CAMBA, Inc.

Catholic Migration Services, Inc.

Center for Court Innovation/Fund for the City of New York/Brownsville Youth Court

Center for Court Innovation/Fund for the City of New York/ Red Hook Youth Court

Puerto Rican Bar Association and PRBA Scholarship Fund, Inc.

The Brooklyn Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project, Inc.

The Children's Law Center

Third Judicial District (Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer, Schoharie, Sullivan, Ulster counties):

Capital District Women's Bar Association (CDWBA)

Court Appointed Special Advocates of Ulster County

Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York (LASNNY)

New York State Defenders Association, Inc.

NYSBA Committee on Courts of Appellate Jurisdiction

NYSBA Committee on Diversity

NYSBA Law, Youth & Citizenship Program/ New York State High School Mock Trial Tournament

NYSBA Law, Youth & Citizenship Program/ Mock Trial Summer Institute 2016

Prisoners' Legal Services of New York

United Tenants of Albany, Inc.

Fourth Judicial District (Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Schenectady, Warren, Washington counties):

The Center for Community Justice, Inc.

Fifth Judicial District (Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego counties):

Frank H. Hiscock Legal Aid Society

Youth Court Jefferson County

Sixth Judicial District (Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Madison, Otsego, Schuyler, Tioga, Tompkins counties):

Horseheads Family Resource Center

Seventh Judicial District (Cayuga, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, Yates counties):

Empire Justice Center (formerly Greater Upstate Law Project (GULP))

Hillside Children's Foundation

Legal Aid Society of Rochester, Inc.

Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc.

Lifespan of Greater Rochester, Inc.

Monroe County Bar Center for Education

The Center for Youth Services, Inc.

Volunteer Legal Services Project of Monroe County (VLSP)

Worker Justice Center of New York, Inc.

Eighth Judicial District (Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans, Wyoming counties):

Family Justice Center of Erie County

Genesee County CASA for Children

Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo, Inc.

Legal Services for the Elderly, Disabled or Disadvantaged of Western New York, Inc.

Mental Health Association of Erie County

Veterans One-stop Center of WNY, Inc.

Western New York Law Center, Inc.

Wyoming County Youth Bureau

Ninth Judicial District (Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Westchester counties):

Legal Services of the Hudson Valley (formerly Westchester/Putnam Legal Services)

Mental Health Association of Westchester, Inc.

My Sisters' Place, Inc.

Pace Women's Justice Center

Tenth Judicial District (Nassau, Suffolk counties):

Long Island Advocacy Center, Inc.

Mercy Haven, Inc.

Nassau Suffolk Law Services Committee, Inc.

NYSBA Law, Youth & Citizenship Program PATCH 2016 Law and Civil Education Summer Institute

Eleventh Judicial District (Queens County):

Center for Court Innovation/Fund for the City of New York/ Queens Youth Court

Center for Integration and Advancement of New Americans, Inc. (CIANA)

Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement House

Twelfth Judicial District (Bronx County):

BronxWorks

MinKwon Center for Community Action (formerly YKASEC)

Part of the Solution

The Bronx Defenders

Thurgood Marshall Junior Mock Trial Program, Inc.

Thirteenth Judicial District (Richmond County):

Richmond County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project, Inc.

The New York Bar Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the New York State Bar Association. To learn more about The Foundation, visit www.tnybf.org. To make a donation to The Foundation visit http://www.tnybf.org/donation/, call 518-487-5651 or email nybarfoundation@tnybf.org.

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