NYCHA Employee Awarded for Care of Older Adults
On October 1, 2020, CABS Home Care, a nonprofit, licensed home care service agency, honored NYCHA Service Coordinator Ginette Scafidi with an award for her commitment to caring and advocating for vulnerable older adult NYCHA residents.
Since 2019, CABS has partnered with NYCHA’s Family Partnerships Department to provide home care resources to disabled and elderly residents.
CABS celebrated Ms. Scafidi and others with the “Circle of Care Award” during an online awards ceremony; Ms. Scafidi was also presented the award at her home in September. The Circle of Care Award is given to people who have provided exemplary services to the community.
“Receiving the CABS Circle of Care Award took me by shock,” Ms. Scafidi said. “I was never expecting it. I was truly honored, and it felt great.”
Ms. Scafidi has been a NYCHA employee for more than a year, and a NYCHA resident since 2000. As a Service Coordinator/Case Worker in the Elderly Safe at Home (ESAH) Program, she provides social services to approximately 275 elderly and/or disabled residents at Reverend Brown and Marcus Garvey Houses in Brooklyn. She visits senior residents at home to do wellness checks and also connects through phone calls to ensure that residents have the resources they need to be safe and healthy so that they can continue to live independently in their home. She also assists them with renewing SNAP benefits and Medicaid, completing annual recertifications for NYCHA, and getting the maintenance repairs they need.
“Ginette goes above and beyond in assisting ESAH residents experience a good quality of life,” Karen Patterson, Deputy Director of NYCHA’s Family Partnerships Department, said. “She is a hard-working team player and as a NYCHA resident she understands firsthand the challenges faced by residents in public housing. This is an honorable recognition. Ginette, your dedication and hard work changes the lives of NYCHA residents. I’m so very happy and proud of you.”
Lauren Antoine, NYCHA Brooklyn Borough Administrator, agreed the award was well-deserved, “Ginette, we are so proud of you, and happy that you are being recognized for your outstanding work in linking elderly/disabled residents to services. Congratulations on receiving the CABS Circle of Care Award!”
The online awards ceremony was held on International Day of Older Persons, as designated by the United Nations General Assembly in 1990. This year’s commemoration highlighted how health care professionals contribute to the health of older people, with a special recognition of nurses and women.
