This past Tuesday The HOPE Program, an employment-training program for homeless men and women founded by Deborah MacFarlane Antoine, hosted its 30th anniversary celebration, A Taste of HOPE.
The event brought together HOPE donors, global corporate partners as well as many award-winning food and beverage purveyors. Hundreds of guests attended A Taste of HOPE to celebrate the impact that The HOPE Program has made in the lives of thousands of New Yorkers over three decades. Among the guests who enjoyed the evening of celebration were several NYJTL board members, including Mayor David Dinkins, Board Chair Martin Goldberg and Polly Scott.
Deborah MacFarlane Antoine received the inaugural Founders Award, presented to her by Victoria Pamias, a HOPE graduate and Deborah’s friend. Upon presenting the award to Deborah, Victoria talked about the impact Deborah and the HOPE program made on her life.
“Good evening. My name is Victoria Pamias. I graduated from HOPE over 25 years ago. When HOPE called me and asked me to present this award to Deborah, I actually had to hear it three times to believe it.
Honoring Deborah is one of the biggest honors of my life. Twenty-five years ago, I found myself the victim of domestic violence. When I enrolled in HOPE, I was living in a shelter and had been out of the workforce for over a decade. I was a broken spirit, sad and afraid. I had two children and I didn’t know what the future would bring. HOPE’s balance of support, training and internship – which remains the core of HOPE’s holistic model today – transformed my life.
Today I work for a leading social services agency, Services for the Underserved, which is actually a HOPE partner, as a case manger and career counselor. When HOPE changed my life, the ripple impacted tens of thousands of people I have helped.
And none of this would have been possible without Deborah MacFarlane-Antoine. Not only did she have the foresight and compassion to build this incredible program, but she embodies its values everyday. When I was a HOPE student, Deborah was my prime example of who I wanted to be in the future. She emulates authenticity and strength, qualities which are changing the world one person at a time.
Deborah, you have been a mentor, a personal friend, and one of the first people who believed in me and the countless of HOPE graduates I represent. Through you, I learned that HOPE is eternal. Thank you and congratulation on this well-deserved Founders Award.”
Click here to read more about the fantastic evening and please watch the video below to learn more about the HOPE program and the impact they are making.