How Trainees Make Neighborhoods Safer
As the Men in Blue, our Ready, Willing & Able trainees clean over 115 miles of NYC streets. This work is just the first step of our program, but it’s where so much of the transformation occurs. It’s the first job many trainees have ever had, and it instills soft skills essential to the modern workplace while helping undo behaviors learned while experiencing addiction, homelessness, and incarceration.
Our trainees’ hard work doesn’t go unnoticed. In fact, the thanks they receive from fellow New Yorkers — and their own recognition of the value they can contribute to their community — is a key part of their journey reentering society.
We know the impact of this work on the trainees in Ready, Willing & Able. And we know its impact on neighborhoods at large: in low and high income areas alike, clean streets lead to safer, more prosperous communities. But how do individuals in the community experience it?
Amanda M. Totaro of Amanda’s Fine Jewels is one of many small business owners who have gone out of their way recently to recognize how much the Men in Blue have improved their neighborhood. “I live in Manhattan and walk my dog on the middle street between 2nd and 3rd on 66th. I wanted to thank [The Doe Fund] and compliment the gentleman who cleans that street,” she wrote. “It is so much cleaner than it used to be! I used to be concerned about walking my dog there because it was filthy, but it is so much better now. I truly appreciate the hard work and am very grateful. Please keep it up!”
Born and raised in Manhattan, Amanda has lived in NYC most of her life. About five years ago, she left her career as a Chief Marketing Officer to pursue her true passion: jewelry.
Amanda’s eye for detail and appreciation of beauty has led to success as a custom jeweler. It also helped her spot the change in cleanliness of her neighborhood.
“I always had to be extremely careful walking my dog up and down the street, making sure he didn’t step on glass or eat some food that someone threw on the sidewalk,” she said. “I noticed that this street was being cleaned regularly, and it made such a difference! It is now MUCH cleaner than it used to be and so much more pleasurable to walk down. This program has made an enormous difference and I very much appreciate how much the gentleman who cleans it truly cares!”
That gentleman is Gerald, a Ready, Willing & Able trainee who goes out of his way to make Amanda’s morning brighter. “I usually run into Gerald when I’m walking Barney in the morning,” she said.
“No matter what the weather is like — freezing cold, raining, snowing, whatever — he is always so friendly. He always says ‘Good Morning,’ and we usually chat a bit… It’s so nice to see him there.”
Amanda knows how important our Community Improvement Project (CIP) social enterprise is to New York’s recovery. “Clean, safe streets are essential to this City,” she said. “It gives me great pride and residents and visitors notice. We all see the difference when an area is well kept and clean, and that makes me feel safe and proud to live here.”
She continued, “I can’t thank them enough for their work. It is noticed and makes a huge difference… I very much appreciate the pride they take in cleaning up this block in my neighborhood, and I know all of us are grateful.”
