This document summarizes President Obama's support for providing living wages and discusses the Community Service Society's (CSS) advocacy efforts to help low-income New Yorkers. CSS believes all who work hard should have opportunities to get ahead. CSS fights for economic mobility through research, programs, and advocacy to bring help and hope to the two in five New Yorkers living in poverty. The document requests donations to support CSS's ongoing work.

1. “... if you are working in America, you should be
able to obtain a living wage and support a family .”
— President Obama
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www.cssny.org
“If you are working in America, you
should be able to obtain a living
wage and support a family.”
-- President Obama, CSS Working Cities Forum, 2007
Dear Friend,
Why did President Obama speak at our Working Cities Forum? Because like
the Community Service Society (CSS), he believes that people who work hard
and play by the rules should have opportunities to get ahead, and not just get by.
Here at CSS, we share the President’s commitment to bringing help and hope
to the working poor. And we’re fighting to make his vision of economic mobility
a reality for the two in five New Yorkers who live on the razor’s edge of poverty.
You may not realize it but these New Yorkers are people you encounter every
day — taking care of your kids, ringing up your purchases, greeting you from
behind the security desk as you walk into work. And during this severe recession,
they are being hit the hardest by pay cuts, layoffs, lost health coverage, and
funding cuts for critical social services.
What they need right now is more than just a sympathetic ear — they need a
voice. And that’s why CSS exists — to give a voice to those who are too often
ignored.
For over 160 years, CSS has been a passionate advocate for the poor.
Thousands of residents, as well as the most prominent politicians and community
leaders, rely on CSS’s expertise to lead the fight against poverty here in our
city — every day.
Our groundbreaking research, innovative programs, and advocacy work put
the needs of the poor squarely on the public agenda.
Join us. Your donation today will help provide an enduring safety net for
people in desperate need during these tough times, and make our city a better
place to live for us all. Sincerely,
David R. Jones
President & CEO
Photo: Greenberg

3. More than 2.5 Million New Yorkers
have no health insurance
Health Care for all New York Campaign
With people across our city losing their jobs,
along with their health insurance, our country’s
economic tsunami is also spiraling into a health-
care catastrophe with no end in sight. But CSS is
tackling this crisis head-on by leading a statewide
coalition of advocacy groups pushing for high-
quality, universal health coverage.
Your gift will help make the prospect of health
care for all residents – a REALITY.
Thousands of New Yorkers don’t take
advantage of benefits they are
entitled to receive.
Center for Benefits and Services (CBS)
Many New Yorkers have difficulty accessing
benefits like food stamps, tax credits, housing
subsidies, health care, and other critical public
supports. Others aren’t even aware of the many
public benefits they’re entitled to.
But CBS assists thousands of individuals and
families in getting the resources they need to
get ahead. It also provides crisis intervention,
counseling, and case-management services to
people facing eviction, or needing help with utility
payments, medical costs, and other essential
expenses.
Your support connects low-income New Yorkers
to benefits that transform their lives.
Half of all New Yorkers have less
than $500 in savings
Financial Coaching Corps
In these challenging times, survival depends
more than ever not just on how much people earn
but, more importantly, on how much they keep.
Our trained senior volunteer financial coaches
give hundreds of low-income New Yorkers the
knowledge they need to manage their money
effectively, make wise financial decisions, avoid
pitfalls, and stretch their modest incomes.
Your donation gives our city’s poor the financial
knowledge they need to help themselves.
CSS has solutions to strengthen and benefit our neighbors in need.
• Nearly 40% of our city’s residents – 3.4 million people – are getting by on less than $33,000 for a family of three.
• CSS’s extensive experience has taught us that when recession hits, the city’s most vulnerable will fall even further behind.
• Today, your generosity will enable CSS to help thousands of people to break the cycle of poverty – for good.
Here are just a few of the challenges CSS is tackling/addressing:
Our city’s most vulnerable residents urgently need your
support, today! Be a part of the solution.
Together we can ensure New York’s future prosperity. Join
CSS and make New York a better place to live for us all.
www.cssny.org
Two in five New
Yorkers live on the
edge of poverty.
Photo: Greenberg