Thank you very much for inviting
me here today to celebrate the opening of the Rahway Housing Authority
Enrichment Center. This event is particularly important to me not
only because of the people this center will serve, but also because we
were able to secure funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development
in order to better serve the city of Rahway.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development created the Resident
Opportunities and Self Sufficiency (ROSS) program in order to link public
housing residents with supportive services, resident empowerment activities,
and assistance in becoming economically self-sufficient through job training,
and financial services, homeownership.
Studies have shown that homeowners accumulate wealth as the investment
in their homes grow, enjoy better living conditions, are often more involved
in their communities, and have children who tend on average to do better
in school. Communities benefit from real estate taxes homeowners
pay, and from stable neighborhoods homeowners create. The benefits
of owning a home are endless.
This center will also promote self-sufficiency among families by offering
training on how residents can start their own businesses, job training
to prepare residents for specific fields of employment and provide supportive
such as childcare, family counseling. The opportunities and
potential for this center are endless.
I want to thank you again for inviting me to a truly special event.
The residents of Rahway will truly benefit from this center. I wish
you all great success.
