Here is a copy of a post I received from Areivim. It reflects the kind of effort I would like to see the majority of the members of the Orthodox community take to alleviate the financial difficulties that are being encountered.
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 23:18:27 +1100
From: "SBA" <sba@sba2.com>
To: "areivim" <areivim@aishdas.org>
Subject: Kiryas Joel – Getting Ready For New Workforce Development Center
Message-ID: <007201c636e1$0207e090$a137eddc
From: VOS IZ NEIAS
Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2006 11:14 PM
Subject: [VOS IZ NEIAS] Kiryas Joel – Getting Ready For New Workforce
Development Center
Kiryas Joel – Village officials are vowing to roll out all they have to
finish up the Kiryas Joel Workforce Development Center. Computer courses,
English lessons, job placement, a chamber of commerce and more, all in this
5,000 square feet of space built with $400,000 in state money to put more
Kiryas Joel citizens to work and help its businesses thrive, thousands of
dollars’ worth of furniture, including desks for 100 students, are on order.
"I want to have this building providing all sorts of training potential,
whether it be community-related or business-related," Kiryas Joel
Administrator said during a building tour.
The vocational needs in this Hasidic community of 18,000 in Kiryas Yoel are
formidable. Men will have studied only religious texts and spoken only
Yiddish or Hebrew in the classroom since the age of 12.
The result is Orange County’s lowest median household income – just more
than $15,000 when the 2000 census was taken – and heavy dependence on
government assistance. Village leaders have responded in recent years with
an economic development push, which includes the work-force center and a
five-story office building now under construction.
Among the next steps in activating the work-force center, Village
Administrator said, is hiring an economic development director or czar to
run its programs.