(CAMDEN, NJ) – Volunteers of America Delaware Valley (VOADV), a social services organization serving New Jersey and Philadelphia, has closed three of its five Navigational Resource Centers in an effort to save jobs and services after losing two-thirds of its state appropriations for direct services. These offices provided access to a broad range of essential services for individuals and families in our communities in order to assist with both short-term and long-term stabilization through the Safe Return and Navigator programs. The organization saw state budget cuts of $3.8 million to its Navigator program, and $3.4 million to its Safe Return program, which supports individuals who have been criminal justice involved.
“VOADV remains committed to providing the highest level of services possible despite this devastating setback,” said Daniel L. Lombardo, President and CEO. “Our staff has not missed a beat, and is hard at work doing more with less, because they know that our client base doesn’t shrink just because our funding has. In fact, we were already preparing to see an increase in demand for services given recent events at the national level.”
VOADV is closing their Atlantic City office serving Atlantic and Cape May counties, their Vineland office serving Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem counties, and their Hainesport office serving Burlington County. The organization has five mobile units which had been utilized throughout the service footprint at community events to offer a private space for clients to engage with social workers on-site. Through collaborative partnerships with providers, hospital systems, law enforcement and the courts, the programs provide outreach, rapid response and navigation to a number of critical social services, including but not limited to treatment and addiction services, housing, employment services, education and more.
A sixth mobile unit was procured last year and is dedicated to providing navigation of legal services throughout all of VOADV’s footprint. Staffed by a lawyer and a paralegal, the Safe Return Legal Navigator helps clients access appropriate legal resources so that participants are empowered to make informed decisions about their legal options. Staff have also provided the same comprehensive social service care that staff at the Resource Centers and on the mobile units have.
“At the heart of VOADV is a dedication to our community that has weathered many storms and adapted to whatever crisis we are facing,” Amanda Leese, Senior Vice President of Operations and overseer of the Safe Return and Navigator programs. “Luckily, we had integrated these mobile units into our service model in an effort to reach more people directly in their communities. Now, they have allowed us to cut costs while saving as many jobs as possible.”
Despite these measures, the non-profit has had to implement significant layoffs across the organization in a mix of direct service and administrative roles, cancel contracts with partner providers, and remove specialists from a number of local police departments as a result of the funding shortfall. Programs which did not see a direct cut to their budgets are nevertheless looking to alternate sources of funding for the support services provided by Safe Return and Navigator.
“With belts tightening across the state, VOADV is incredibly grateful for our partnerships with lawmakers who have to make the tough decisions while working to provide the social safety nets our communities deserve,” Mr. Lombardo added. “We look forward to continuing to collaborate with our partners in the legislature and at every level of government to craft dynamic solutions to our state’s needs.”
For nearly 130 years, VOADV has been providing social services to the Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia region in the form of reentry, homeless services for individuals and families, parole programs, substance use treatment programs, behavioral health, and more. VOADV administers the only low-barrier veteran’s shelter in the state, builds affordable housing for working families, seniors, and veterans, and partners with state police to work with survivors of human trafficking.
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About Volunteers of America Delaware Valley
Volunteers of America Delaware Valley (VOADV), is a 501(c) 3 non-profit social service agency that has been providing essential services to vulnerable individuals and communities since 1896. Headquartered in the City of Camden, New Jersey, VOADV is characterized by its diversity of programming and assistance services and supported by a team of more than 400 qualified, mission-driven professionals that work tirelessly on behalf of their clients.