Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
The views and opinions expressed in the following programmer those
of the speaker and don't necessarily represent those of the station, gets, staff,
management or ownership.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Good money you're finding out, Pete and Poke hold, I'm
Peter Leonard and Poe Cold will not be with us today,
but we are nevertheless with Trish Puncy from Family Services.
And before we get to Trish, instead of doing goals,
weekly poem, prayer incantation, I'm going to repeat a poem
at the beginning of a poem by William Butler. Yes,
(00:33):
where dips the rocky highland of Swouthwood in the lake,
the lives of Leafy Island were flapping heron's wake, the
drowsy water rats. There we've hit our fairy vets full
of berries, and there are stolen sherries who come away
of human child to the waters and the wild with
a fairy hand in hand. With the world's more full
(00:54):
of weeping than you can understand. And with the weeping
in the world, there's a way of really some of that,
and that is by a giving, and Trishes specialists in giving.
So you want to explain your role with Family Services.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
I'm the vice president philanthropy at Family Services and I
am charges creating an environment where people give. And in
the two and a half years i've been there, we've
seen a huge increase in people wanting to be part
of Family Services. And really it's about telling your story
and it's about what's in people's hearts. So connecting our
story with people's hearts is what I do. And we've
(01:35):
got something really exciting coming up. It's a Giving Tuesday.
It's a Tuesday after Thanksgiving December third this year. What's
so exciting about Giving Tuesday is it's a global day
of giving that was started twelve years ago. And twelve
years ago, on that day they raised ten point one
million dollars. Today we're raising over three billion dollars.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
On that day.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
That whole thing doesn't say a Family Services, does it.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
The three billion dollars that would be a great amount
that's globally and so it's so exciting about Giving Tuesday,
I think is it rallies people around this premise of giving.
And after you've had your big Thanksgiving dinner with your family,
you've done some shopping on Black Friday and some small
business Saturday and some Cyber Monday Tuesdays your day forgiving,
(02:22):
and we found a real uptick in giving on that
day at Family Services. So this year at Family Services
we have over eight thousand dollars in matching money. And
that means every dollar you give it'll be matched.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Well, that's a lot. And you know Thanksgiving. You know,
we're still on Thanksgiving weekend, so that as it plays
out on Sunday here and you can write a check
that you can put right in the mail and designated
for giving Tuesday. That's a big deal. I never paid
(02:57):
much attention to Giving Tuesday. And this is the first
year that I ask you will learn to me so
you know the way it works. And there's something fun,
not only fun, but something uplifting about giving when other
people are giving. When you give as a sort of
a solitary person, it doesn't strike me as as meaningful.
(03:23):
It's being part of a giving community is much more important,
I think, and not only feels better in a emotionally
but in a public way. I mean, part of civic
life is if you have it, to give it and
(03:44):
Family Service is a good place to thought.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
Yeah, exactly, Peter.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
And what's so interesting about our match at Family Services,
It's not just.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
From one donor.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
That money is made up of five different people and
they're all giving what they can give. But the reason
they wanted to do it is they knew it would
drive giving. People have the chance for every dollar they
give to get it matched, meaning for every dollar you give,
it's worth two dollars. So if we raise that eight
or ten thousand, whatever we end up having for a match,
(04:15):
that's another ten thousand donations. We're now at twenty thousand dollars,
for instance, and that's exciting, and that money can go
a long way at Family Services.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
Yeah, the two times tables and not that complicated, but
everyone likes and when it comes to good So if
you give a dollar, you're really given two dollars. One
way to beat inflation, right.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
Well exactly, that's a great way to think of it.
And you know, we've got so many programs that help
people here right in our community from our behavioral health sites,
which this is exciting, but in twenty twenty five we're
going to be helping children ages three to eighteen. And
we really were reacting to concerns from parents up in
(04:58):
Northern Duchess, for instance. They were talking to us and
they said they've been waiting eighteen months to get an
appointment for their child. When your child needs mental health
behavioral health services, you can't wait eighteen months. So we
heard that, we've reacted. We're going to open a new
center in Rhinebeck and all of our centers though, will
be taking three year olds to eighteen year olds in
(05:21):
twenty twenty five, and then our other services too. We've
got the Center for Victims Safety and Support, which is
there to help victims of domestic violence or sexual assault.
The Children's Center at the Courthouse, which if you have
to go for some kind of a hearing and you
have your children with you, you can leave them in
this safe, really warm environment. And what's so great about
(05:42):
it is it's right at Family Court, Yeah, on the
second floor in Dutchess County. We also have it in
Orange County, Ulster County. And what's so great about it
is parents have actually come in with their children or
mothers leaving their children and they say things like, Wow,
this is the first time I actually could relax today.
I'm leaving my you know, my baby. We had two
babies the other day, leaving my baby here with good care,
(06:05):
and now I can go in and focus on the
issues I'm focusing on in court.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
So these are just some of our family.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
You have something on your mind, you don't need a child.
Speaker 1 (06:16):
Right and you may not want a young child in
there or eight year old in there listening to whatever's
going on. So it's a great space full of toys.
There was a whole cradle full of baby dolls. It's
just a great space. And so any donations we get
help all of these programs.
Speaker 2 (06:31):
You also have the Family Partnership Center. It's winning on
North Hamilton Street and Bishopsies. You want to explain what
the Family Partnership is about, you know.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
It's a great it's a we're the great anchor for
the Hudson Valley. We have lots of other nonprofits that
help people in the community and they rent in our
building and we call them all our partners.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
We all try to work together.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
You know, We've got from the Hudson Valley Justice Project
to Dutchess Outreach to sun River Health. So a lot
of your needs you can come in and get taken
care of. And in Poughkeepsie a lot of people walk,
you know, a lot of Dutchess County. You got to
be in your car, right, you need a car to
get places right, or you see people waiting for buses
(07:12):
that you wonder when they're coming. But in Poughkeepsie people
can walk. And so for where we're located on the
north side of Poughkeepsie, it's just perfect. It's perfect people
to be able to come in and see the doctor
and take care of you know, the wick programs there
take care of a lot of these things.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
The education.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
There's a family education program that follows baby, follows you
from the time you have your baby till they're five
years old.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
We have all sorts of great things going on.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Yeah, I mean family services is hard to understand because
of how why the services are and in one sense
it could exhaust somebody think, oh they have to but
you don't have to learn everything. But you should have
the conference that every one of the programs, whether it's
the Crime Victim's Sensor or the Youth Censor which is
(08:04):
called TRACK, or the Partnership Sensor itself, the rule very
deliberately run, very responsibly run, and without them, the world
is worse. So if you want to make the world better,
your enswer instative zeal.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
Yeah, that's exactly right, And it's not like just anyone
can rent in our building. The kind of all the
pieces have to fit together. We're really focused on youth.
We want to because we really feel if you're helping
a young person, you know, you can change their trajectory
in life, you can really help, you know, inspire them.
And therefore certain nonprofits that want to come in, we
(08:44):
have to really look at what are they doing, who
are they serving, what populations are they serving because we're
focusing on youth, so some don't fit, that's all.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
And let me remind people that they're finding out peteing
the poelic gold on Peter Polic Gold is not with
us today, just why it's always saw on when gold
is in the here. But we are here with Trish
perunci Uh the vice president for philanthropy at Family Services.
And you mentioned there are other nonprofits in the family
(09:15):
Partnership sense the building which uh which FSA Family Services runs.
Some people are dedicated to other places I such as outreach,
the Center of the health. Would giving shoes, they'd be
a good time. Takes the opportunity for them to for
(09:35):
somebody to write check to them.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
Also, yeah, I know for instance Dutchess Outreach is absolutely
participating in Giving Tuesday. So yeah, all the all the nonprofits.
I need money and you know it. As a vice
president philanthropy, my view is there's plenty of money.
Speaker 3 (09:50):
To go around.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
So I never look at it like, oh, you know,
I don't want someone talking to my donor because they
might want to give me money over here, right. I
don't ever look at it like I'm always happy that
if that person for me giving, it's what's in your heart.
So if you feel like, yeah, family Services for me,
but you may also like Dutchess Outreach, or you may
also like some other nonprofit and for me, that's all good.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
Yeah, most people who are supportive of one nonprofit usually
have I'll give some multiple agencies because the real recipient
of all the money is what you call the community
of the local community. If you want to give you
a national thing, that's fine, so, but local giving, whether
(10:34):
it's Family Services and your Horizons, ord As Outreach, these
are really important things for local lives.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
And yeah, no, that's a really good point you're making.
And I remember a few years ago a local person
who was rather a major donor in our area. He
said to me. He said, Trish, what should I do?
Should I give, like you said, to national organizations in
my college which was halfway across the country, or should
I give to the community. And I said, well, you've
(11:04):
lived here your whole life. Why did you think about
it that way? I want to give to my community.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
And he was like, yeah, yeah, you're right. You're right.
So it's not that those other ones don't.
Speaker 1 (11:13):
You know, the college doesn't need as money or the
other they all do. But I think where you can
affect change and where you live that's really important.
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Effects even change the way you live is a big deal.
But you mentioned colleges, and of course we have. I
was student here from Vasa College in Covell at Vaster College.
There's a lot of money that has been given over
the years. And you know, I might have a different
opinion than you. But going to Tricia's very controversial statement
(11:44):
about everyone needs the money, I mean, does still benefit
from people giving now in any way that affects your
life as a student.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
Well, something I found interesting that you were talking about
was the giving now versus locally, because at an institution
and it's about twenty five hundred students and you know,
We have a new building that just went up. I
don't know if you've seen it, the Heartwood Hotel and
the Salt Line restaurant. Yeah, looks great, it looks fantastic. Yeah,
but it's a matter of you know, where we are
(12:18):
putting our money and where the donors because it's different.
I'm understanding that it's different for you because you guys
have the choice where to put the money.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
Correct.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
Yes, And it's you know, well, there's two types of giving.
People giving what's called unrestricted money, which is you can
then choose how to use the money or it's restricted
to a specific things. So I know in vest is
raising money to build a building, those donors it's only
for the building.
Speaker 4 (12:40):
Right of course. And so do any donors have you
experienced this? Do any donors specifically ask you to put
the money in one of your organizations?
Speaker 3 (12:47):
Totally? Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (12:50):
Is it common though, or is it more like people
are just in the giving spirit?
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Yeah? I think a family services is more. People want
to want to give, want to help, so they're not
just saying it can only go for this one purpose.
And I think for most nonprofits, we definitely need people
to just give us money where we can.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
Use it best.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Okay, but yeah, but there are certainly people who have
certain things in mind, like I know this woman, she
only wanted to give to endowment.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
You say, what's endowment?
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Endowments where we build a nest egg and we use
the interest off that for your organization. And some charities
or nonprofits like family Services we don't have an endowment,
but Vassar College has trillion dollar indominant, right, But there's
people they only want to give to that because you
know what, then their money is always there, and long
after they're gone, their money's there and they feel they
feel good about it, they feel like, you know, it'll
(13:38):
live on.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
So yeah, let me say something about that. You know,
an endowment is a good thing. And VASA has probably
one point three or four million billion dollars, which some
people might think is too much onion. Okay, I've been
(14:00):
so by the way, it's a very lovely place to
pay me for over thirty years a teacher and administrator there,
so I'm not again as vast, let's make that clear.
But at a billion and a half dollars you saw
as the question is that too much? You know? And
certainly when you get up to something like you know,
(14:20):
Harvard will then they have like fifty sixty billion dollars,
which is collecting interest tax free in all. I think
that's too much, believe.
Speaker 4 (14:32):
I have a question if you had kind of unlimited resources,
unlimited not I guess, I guess an unlimited fund in
the billions per se? What would be the first thing
that you guys would do? Do you know? That's a
loaded question?
Speaker 1 (14:46):
So well, I think the first thing we would do
is totally renovate our building. Our building is one hundred
and ten years old. Oh wow, and with that comes
all sorts of problems and us yesterday we announced the
EPA announced a five million dollar grant so we could
remediate the building of asbestos. And then we've applied for
(15:08):
a ten million dollar grant to be able to put
the floors and the ceilings back in after the remediation.
That's not the only issue. One hundred and ten year
old building has pipes underneath it that literally are rotting away.
So right, you're not going to get a donor. I
can't even imagine someone coming up to the third floor
knocking on my door and going, you know what, I
want to give money for the plumbing, so right, so
(15:28):
that's not going to probably happen, So you have to
go for these big grants. But if there was money,
I do think not only that, but also there's old
parts of the building that need a facelift. We want
to make it a really welcoming, wonderful place for people
when they come into our building, so Community Center, Yeah,
(15:48):
and so they come in and they feel like, yeah,
this is the place I want to be.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
It's welcoming, it's warm, you know, yeah.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
It's full of hope. And I mean, ultimately, what Family
Service wants to do lift people from the issues they're
having to a sense of more self reliance and hope.
And the truth is the architecture can do that. I mean,
the new front of the Family Partnership Center is this Tresues.
(16:17):
We are welcoming and that's a great word for it.
But as you walk towards it and you walk in
the building, you feel lifted by you feel inspired by it,
you feel more powerful in terms of addressing things. So
architecture is a form of human service and healing, and
(16:39):
it is in these questions you are ready to man,
we're getting ready for the future. We're bad as you
even do the plumbing and all that is, you know,
to me is indicative of the responsible disposition among the
admitted strats at Family Services. They're looking out for the
(17:03):
well being of the community through that building. There. The
programs are all important and good and essential, but the
programs don't exist until the building is there.
Speaker 1 (17:15):
Yeah, Peter, I just wanted to add that new front entryway.
It has totally changed the vibe in the building. You know,
people are like you said, they come in, they feel welcome.
It's just a great addition. We can have events out there,
we can people can rent it. It's it's really you know,
it's been huge for our for.
Speaker 2 (17:36):
Our building, and I want to remind people they're finding
out Pete and Poe Gold Peter Leonard and Poet Gold
is not with us today unfortunately, but we're here with
Trish Puncy, the vice president of Philanthropy at Family Services,
and Cydney Covell, a Vassar student who has been with
us all semester, and she pictures into many of our
(17:58):
conversations and just so people get a sense of what
giving is about. I mean, you know, we have Thanksgiving.
I mean what's still giving for Thanksgiving? Man you want
you have thanks, well, then give. Do you want to
give a sense of how you wound up in this
(18:19):
position your life? What led you along the path to philanthropy,
which is a very big word for giving.
Speaker 1 (18:30):
Well, it actually started way back to when I was
in college. I went to a Western England university in Springfield, Massachusetts,
and I used to raise money for all the student
groups as a student, and then the alumni association one
day said, you know, you're really good at it. Would
you organize it and lead the charge next year for
the student So I did. My senior year, I did that,
(18:52):
and then I realized I really liked it.
Speaker 3 (18:54):
And what did I like about it?
Speaker 1 (18:55):
I liked connecting alumni back to the college, getting that
money need to help the university right, and to help
the students. I mean, you always raise no matter what
college you're at, scholarships. People want to help others. So
that's what I'll started, that feeling of I want to
help others, and then my whole career just followed that path.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Yeah, so let me just if you get maybe you
get a little more personal than you want to get.
But it's such a rare kind of they say you're
good at it. Most people hate. There's other people for money,
and for you to be good is something everyone else hayes,
as I say something good to bad about you? Is
(19:33):
you not want to speculate?
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Yeah, well, I look at it as my way of
being able to give back that because I do like it,
and I'm willing to do it for organizations I'm involved with,
you know, as a volunteer. I'm involved with two or
three other organizations. I'll have lunch with anyone who wants
to learn about fundraising and start up their own you know,
five oh one c three.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
So that's how we give back.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
That's just yeah, I think that's earlier point when you
made my mom My mom is the president of my
high school's like the scholarship fund. And it's been hard
during Thanksgiven, honestly because the narrative of Thanksgiving with Black
Friday and Cyber Monday has changed a little bit. And historically,
you know, it's it's supposed to be about the act
(20:18):
of giving. And I really do love the fact that
you guys chose Tuesday because it doesn't detract from the
other days and it gives it its own day, which
it should be on Thursday. But you know, I think
that it is really important to bring it back to
the goal of thanksgiving.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Yeah, no, that's a really good point and giving thanks
and being with your family and your friends and no,
that's right.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
It's also a great contrast to getting a bogain. I'm like,
you know, I mean getting a boggain is if everyone
sort of likes to save money, but some people like
the thrill of actually getting the boguin itself. It's almost
like the thrill seeking activity is so off and I
(21:03):
don't think it really is one of the uplifting human characteristics,
you know. I'm like, you know, when you die, I say, oh,
but you know the thing about Sally, do you love
the bargain.
Speaker 3 (21:17):
Engraved?
Speaker 2 (21:18):
Yeah, what a bargain? Hants it? But because it's you know,
it might be fun, it might be meaningful as it's on.
But in general, living a meaningful human life, thanks and
giving and go together. Everyone I think is open to
(21:39):
thanks and if you have, you know, your middle class money,
give some of it up rights.
Speaker 4 (21:46):
It has it gotten better over the years progressively, the
giving on Tuesdays.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Or oh totally.
Speaker 1 (21:52):
And I think people love knowing if they give a
dollar that it's worth two dollars by having matches. So yeah,
that's going back to the boggain hunting. But actually it
is a bargain pieure, right, you can really get a
lot for your one hundred dollars donation. Now it's worth
two hundred dollars, and then you know it's really helping someone.
And you may not know how it helped somebody, right,
(22:14):
but it does. And a lot of the teens that
come to our teen program, I talked to them and gosh,
just that little donation, well one hundred dollars could be
a big donation for some people. It really helps them
and changes someone's life. So you can feel good about that.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
You know that with inflation, anybody who's growing up giving
so it gives you a church and you know, you
have you get stuck in thinking that a dollar is
a lot, and you know, fifty years ago, I'm seventy
five years old. Fifty years ago, seventy five years ago,
the dollar was a lot. It's not a lot there,
(22:51):
let me tell you. And you know, just your you're thinking.
So if you're a middle class person I mentioning one
hundred dollars, the size of the contribution is not as
big as the way it sounds. One hundred bucks sounds
like a lot to give, But believe me, if you
(23:11):
can afford a hundred, good, it's just show five hundred.
Come on.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Yeah, that's true.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
But I like to say, you know, people if they
can give at capacity, so it's everyone has a different capacity.
You know what kind of money they make a lot
of people like to focus on things like, well, you
know there's those mega donors now, you know, giving hundreds
of millions of dollars. It's true, but I think it's
the everyday person giving that truly makes a difference in
(23:38):
our community and in our country.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
And I would say to that, I would agree with it.
And it's non arithmetic. It's a spiritual thing. If everyone gives,
and if they give together, it's just a civic sacrament
that binds us together. It not only does good work,
it brings us together in a way that we know
(24:01):
that our our community cares. And I'm part of that
caring because of my ten dollars gifts, one hundred dollars gifts,
ten thousand dollars gift. Some people have ten thousand bucks.
Come on, man, it's spring well.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
And we also know that these big mega donors giving
you know, twenty million dollars one hundred thousand, one hundred
million dollars to charities.
Speaker 3 (24:23):
They're not going to.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
Focus on Poughkeepsie. They're not going to focus on the
Hudson Valley. Who's going to focus on the Hudson Valley?
The people that live here, and we all have to
care about our neighbor.
Speaker 2 (24:32):
And tell us how to get in touch with you,
because there are people who are going to want to
talk to you.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
You certainly can email me and it's at t p
r U n t Y t pronty at Family Services
NY dot org, or you can call me eight four
five three three seven eight two three six and our
address is twenty nine North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, one two
six oh one Family Services.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
And we certainly appreciate you being here on our Thanksgiving show,
and uh, we're all for thanks and we're all forgiving.
So thank you for Sidney Corvell our student perspective this
week as well as Chrich Puncy Uh, the vice president
for philanthropy Family Services, Happy Thanksgiving to everybody insight here
(25:21):
within ear range. Thanks
The views and opinions expressed in the following programmer those
of the speaker and don't necessarily represent those of the station, gets, staff,
management or ownership.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Good money you're finding out, Pete and Poke hold, I'm
Peter Leonard and Poe Cold will not be with us today,
but we are nevertheless with Trish Puncy from Family Services.
And before we get to Trish, instead of doing goals,
weekly poem, prayer incantation, I'm going to repeat a poem
at the beginning of a poem by William Butler. Yes,
(00:33):
where dips the rocky highland of Swouthwood in the lake,
the lives of Leafy Island were flapping heron's wake, the
drowsy water rats. There we've hit our fairy vets full
of berries, and there are stolen sherries who come away
of human child to the waters and the wild with
a fairy hand in hand. With the world's more full
(00:54):
of weeping than you can understand. And with the weeping
in the world, there's a way of really some of that,
and that is by a giving, and Trishes specialists in giving.
So you want to explain your role with Family Services.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
I'm the vice president philanthropy at Family Services and I
am charges creating an environment where people give. And in
the two and a half years i've been there, we've
seen a huge increase in people wanting to be part
of Family Services. And really it's about telling your story
and it's about what's in people's hearts. So connecting our
story with people's hearts is what I do. And we've
(01:35):
got something really exciting coming up. It's a Giving Tuesday.
It's a Tuesday after Thanksgiving December third this year. What's
so exciting about Giving Tuesday is it's a global day
of giving that was started twelve years ago. And twelve
years ago, on that day they raised ten point one
million dollars. Today we're raising over three billion dollars.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
On that day.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
That whole thing doesn't say a Family Services, does it.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
The three billion dollars that would be a great amount
that's globally and so it's so exciting about Giving Tuesday,
I think is it rallies people around this premise of giving.
And after you've had your big Thanksgiving dinner with your family,
you've done some shopping on Black Friday and some small
business Saturday and some Cyber Monday Tuesdays your day forgiving,
(02:22):
and we found a real uptick in giving on that
day at Family Services. So this year at Family Services
we have over eight thousand dollars in matching money. And
that means every dollar you give it'll be matched.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Well, that's a lot. And you know Thanksgiving. You know,
we're still on Thanksgiving weekend, so that as it plays
out on Sunday here and you can write a check
that you can put right in the mail and designated
for giving Tuesday. That's a big deal. I never paid
(02:57):
much attention to Giving Tuesday. And this is the first
year that I ask you will learn to me so
you know the way it works. And there's something fun,
not only fun, but something uplifting about giving when other
people are giving. When you give as a sort of
a solitary person, it doesn't strike me as as meaningful.
(03:23):
It's being part of a giving community is much more important,
I think, and not only feels better in a emotionally
but in a public way. I mean, part of civic
life is if you have it, to give it and
(03:44):
Family Service is a good place to thought.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
Yeah, exactly, Peter.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
And what's so interesting about our match at Family Services,
It's not just.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
From one donor.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
That money is made up of five different people and
they're all giving what they can give. But the reason
they wanted to do it is they knew it would
drive giving. People have the chance for every dollar they
give to get it matched, meaning for every dollar you give,
it's worth two dollars. So if we raise that eight
or ten thousand, whatever we end up having for a match,
(04:15):
that's another ten thousand donations. We're now at twenty thousand dollars,
for instance, and that's exciting, and that money can go
a long way at Family Services.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
Yeah, the two times tables and not that complicated, but
everyone likes and when it comes to good So if
you give a dollar, you're really given two dollars. One
way to beat inflation, right.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
Well exactly, that's a great way to think of it.
And you know, we've got so many programs that help
people here right in our community from our behavioral health sites,
which this is exciting, but in twenty twenty five we're
going to be helping children ages three to eighteen. And
we really were reacting to concerns from parents up in
(04:58):
Northern Duchess, for instance. They were talking to us and
they said they've been waiting eighteen months to get an
appointment for their child. When your child needs mental health
behavioral health services, you can't wait eighteen months. So we
heard that, we've reacted. We're going to open a new
center in Rhinebeck and all of our centers though, will
be taking three year olds to eighteen year olds in
(05:21):
twenty twenty five, and then our other services too. We've
got the Center for Victims Safety and Support, which is
there to help victims of domestic violence or sexual assault.
The Children's Center at the Courthouse, which if you have
to go for some kind of a hearing and you
have your children with you, you can leave them in
this safe, really warm environment. And what's so great about
(05:42):
it is it's right at Family Court, Yeah, on the
second floor in Dutchess County. We also have it in
Orange County, Ulster County. And what's so great about it
is parents have actually come in with their children or
mothers leaving their children and they say things like, Wow,
this is the first time I actually could relax today.
I'm leaving my you know, my baby. We had two
babies the other day, leaving my baby here with good care,
(06:05):
and now I can go in and focus on the
issues I'm focusing on in court.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
So these are just some of our family.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
You have something on your mind, you don't need a child.
Speaker 1 (06:16):
Right and you may not want a young child in
there or eight year old in there listening to whatever's
going on. So it's a great space full of toys.
There was a whole cradle full of baby dolls. It's
just a great space. And so any donations we get
help all of these programs.
Speaker 2 (06:31):
You also have the Family Partnership Center. It's winning on
North Hamilton Street and Bishopsies. You want to explain what
the Family Partnership is about, you know.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
It's a great it's a we're the great anchor for
the Hudson Valley. We have lots of other nonprofits that
help people in the community and they rent in our
building and we call them all our partners.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
We all try to work together.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
You know, We've got from the Hudson Valley Justice Project
to Dutchess Outreach to sun River Health. So a lot
of your needs you can come in and get taken
care of. And in Poughkeepsie a lot of people walk,
you know, a lot of Dutchess County. You got to
be in your car, right, you need a car to
get places right, or you see people waiting for buses
(07:12):
that you wonder when they're coming. But in Poughkeepsie people
can walk. And so for where we're located on the
north side of Poughkeepsie, it's just perfect. It's perfect people
to be able to come in and see the doctor
and take care of you know, the wick programs there
take care of a lot of these things.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
The education.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
There's a family education program that follows baby, follows you
from the time you have your baby till they're five
years old.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
We have all sorts of great things going on.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Yeah, I mean family services is hard to understand because
of how why the services are and in one sense
it could exhaust somebody think, oh they have to but
you don't have to learn everything. But you should have
the conference that every one of the programs, whether it's
the Crime Victim's Sensor or the Youth Censor which is
(08:04):
called TRACK, or the Partnership Sensor itself, the rule very
deliberately run, very responsibly run, and without them, the world
is worse. So if you want to make the world better,
your enswer instative zeal.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
Yeah, that's exactly right, And it's not like just anyone
can rent in our building. The kind of all the
pieces have to fit together. We're really focused on youth.
We want to because we really feel if you're helping
a young person, you know, you can change their trajectory
in life, you can really help, you know, inspire them.
And therefore certain nonprofits that want to come in, we
(08:44):
have to really look at what are they doing, who
are they serving, what populations are they serving because we're
focusing on youth, so some don't fit, that's all.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
And let me remind people that they're finding out peteing
the poelic gold on Peter Polic Gold is not with
us today, just why it's always saw on when gold
is in the here. But we are here with Trish
perunci Uh the vice president for philanthropy at Family Services.
And you mentioned there are other nonprofits in the family
(09:15):
Partnership sense the building which uh which FSA Family Services runs.
Some people are dedicated to other places I such as outreach,
the Center of the health. Would giving shoes, they'd be
a good time. Takes the opportunity for them to for
(09:35):
somebody to write check to them.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
Also, yeah, I know for instance Dutchess Outreach is absolutely
participating in Giving Tuesday. So yeah, all the all the nonprofits.
I need money and you know it. As a vice
president philanthropy, my view is there's plenty of money.
Speaker 3 (09:50):
To go around.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
So I never look at it like, oh, you know,
I don't want someone talking to my donor because they
might want to give me money over here, right. I
don't ever look at it like I'm always happy that
if that person for me giving, it's what's in your heart.
So if you feel like, yeah, family Services for me,
but you may also like Dutchess Outreach, or you may
also like some other nonprofit and for me, that's all good.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
Yeah, most people who are supportive of one nonprofit usually
have I'll give some multiple agencies because the real recipient
of all the money is what you call the community
of the local community. If you want to give you
a national thing, that's fine, so, but local giving, whether
(10:34):
it's Family Services and your Horizons, ord As Outreach, these
are really important things for local lives.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
And yeah, no, that's a really good point you're making.
And I remember a few years ago a local person
who was rather a major donor in our area. He
said to me. He said, Trish, what should I do?
Should I give, like you said, to national organizations in
my college which was halfway across the country, or should
I give to the community. And I said, well, you've
(11:04):
lived here your whole life. Why did you think about
it that way? I want to give to my community.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
And he was like, yeah, yeah, you're right. You're right.
So it's not that those other ones don't.
Speaker 1 (11:13):
You know, the college doesn't need as money or the
other they all do. But I think where you can
affect change and where you live that's really important.
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Effects even change the way you live is a big deal.
But you mentioned colleges, and of course we have. I
was student here from Vasa College in Covell at Vaster College.
There's a lot of money that has been given over
the years. And you know, I might have a different
opinion than you. But going to Tricia's very controversial statement
(11:44):
about everyone needs the money, I mean, does still benefit
from people giving now in any way that affects your
life as a student.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
Well, something I found interesting that you were talking about
was the giving now versus locally, because at an institution
and it's about twenty five hundred students and you know,
We have a new building that just went up. I
don't know if you've seen it, the Heartwood Hotel and
the Salt Line restaurant. Yeah, looks great, it looks fantastic. Yeah,
but it's a matter of you know, where we are
(12:18):
putting our money and where the donors because it's different.
I'm understanding that it's different for you because you guys
have the choice where to put the money.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
Correct.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
Yes, And it's you know, well, there's two types of giving.
People giving what's called unrestricted money, which is you can
then choose how to use the money or it's restricted
to a specific things. So I know in vest is
raising money to build a building, those donors it's only
for the building.
Speaker 4 (12:40):
Right of course. And so do any donors have you
experienced this? Do any donors specifically ask you to put
the money in one of your organizations?
Speaker 3 (12:47):
Totally? Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (12:50):
Is it common though, or is it more like people
are just in the giving spirit?
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Yeah? I think a family services is more. People want
to want to give, want to help, so they're not
just saying it can only go for this one purpose.
And I think for most nonprofits, we definitely need people
to just give us money where we can.
Speaker 3 (13:08):
Use it best.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Okay, but yeah, but there are certainly people who have
certain things in mind, like I know this woman, she
only wanted to give to endowment.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
You say, what's endowment?
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Endowments where we build a nest egg and we use
the interest off that for your organization. And some charities
or nonprofits like family Services we don't have an endowment,
but Vassar College has trillion dollar indominant, right, But there's
people they only want to give to that because you
know what, then their money is always there, and long
after they're gone, their money's there and they feel they
feel good about it, they feel like, you know, it'll
(13:38):
live on.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
So yeah, let me say something about that. You know,
an endowment is a good thing. And VASA has probably
one point three or four million billion dollars, which some
people might think is too much onion. Okay, I've been
(14:00):
so by the way, it's a very lovely place to
pay me for over thirty years a teacher and administrator there,
so I'm not again as vast, let's make that clear.
But at a billion and a half dollars you saw
as the question is that too much? You know? And
certainly when you get up to something like you know,
(14:20):
Harvard will then they have like fifty sixty billion dollars,
which is collecting interest tax free in all. I think
that's too much, believe.
Speaker 4 (14:32):
I have a question if you had kind of unlimited resources,
unlimited not I guess, I guess an unlimited fund in
the billions per se? What would be the first thing
that you guys would do? Do you know? That's a
loaded question?
Speaker 1 (14:46):
So well, I think the first thing we would do
is totally renovate our building. Our building is one hundred
and ten years old. Oh wow, and with that comes
all sorts of problems and us yesterday we announced the
EPA announced a five million dollar grant so we could
remediate the building of asbestos. And then we've applied for
(15:08):
a ten million dollar grant to be able to put
the floors and the ceilings back in after the remediation.
That's not the only issue. One hundred and ten year
old building has pipes underneath it that literally are rotting away.
So right, you're not going to get a donor. I
can't even imagine someone coming up to the third floor
knocking on my door and going, you know what, I
want to give money for the plumbing, so right, so
(15:28):
that's not going to probably happen, So you have to
go for these big grants. But if there was money,
I do think not only that, but also there's old
parts of the building that need a facelift. We want
to make it a really welcoming, wonderful place for people
when they come into our building, so Community Center, Yeah,
(15:48):
and so they come in and they feel like, yeah,
this is the place I want to be.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
It's welcoming, it's warm, you know, yeah.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
It's full of hope. And I mean, ultimately, what Family
Service wants to do lift people from the issues they're
having to a sense of more self reliance and hope.
And the truth is the architecture can do that. I mean,
the new front of the Family Partnership Center is this Tresues.
(16:17):
We are welcoming and that's a great word for it.
But as you walk towards it and you walk in
the building, you feel lifted by you feel inspired by it,
you feel more powerful in terms of addressing things. So
architecture is a form of human service and healing, and
(16:39):
it is in these questions you are ready to man,
we're getting ready for the future. We're bad as you
even do the plumbing and all that is, you know,
to me is indicative of the responsible disposition among the
admitted strats at Family Services. They're looking out for the
(17:03):
well being of the community through that building. There. The
programs are all important and good and essential, but the
programs don't exist until the building is there.
Speaker 1 (17:15):
Yeah, Peter, I just wanted to add that new front entryway.
It has totally changed the vibe in the building. You know,
people are like you said, they come in, they feel welcome.
It's just a great addition. We can have events out there,
we can people can rent it. It's it's really you know,
it's been huge for our for.
Speaker 2 (17:36):
Our building, and I want to remind people they're finding
out Pete and Poe Gold Peter Leonard and Poet Gold
is not with us today unfortunately, but we're here with
Trish Puncy, the vice president of Philanthropy at Family Services,
and Cydney Covell, a Vassar student who has been with
us all semester, and she pictures into many of our
(17:58):
conversations and just so people get a sense of what
giving is about. I mean, you know, we have Thanksgiving.
I mean what's still giving for Thanksgiving? Man you want
you have thanks, well, then give. Do you want to
give a sense of how you wound up in this
(18:19):
position your life? What led you along the path to philanthropy,
which is a very big word for giving.
Speaker 1 (18:30):
Well, it actually started way back to when I was
in college. I went to a Western England university in Springfield, Massachusetts,
and I used to raise money for all the student
groups as a student, and then the alumni association one
day said, you know, you're really good at it. Would
you organize it and lead the charge next year for
the student So I did. My senior year, I did that,
(18:52):
and then I realized I really liked it.
Speaker 3 (18:54):
And what did I like about it?
Speaker 1 (18:55):
I liked connecting alumni back to the college, getting that
money need to help the university right, and to help
the students. I mean, you always raise no matter what
college you're at, scholarships. People want to help others. So
that's what I'll started, that feeling of I want to
help others, and then my whole career just followed that path.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Yeah, so let me just if you get maybe you
get a little more personal than you want to get.
But it's such a rare kind of they say you're
good at it. Most people hate. There's other people for money,
and for you to be good is something everyone else hayes,
as I say something good to bad about you? Is
(19:33):
you not want to speculate?
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Yeah, well, I look at it as my way of
being able to give back that because I do like it,
and I'm willing to do it for organizations I'm involved with,
you know, as a volunteer. I'm involved with two or
three other organizations. I'll have lunch with anyone who wants
to learn about fundraising and start up their own you know,
five oh one c three.
Speaker 3 (19:56):
So that's how we give back.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
That's just yeah, I think that's earlier point when you
made my mom My mom is the president of my
high school's like the scholarship fund. And it's been hard
during Thanksgiven, honestly because the narrative of Thanksgiving with Black
Friday and Cyber Monday has changed a little bit. And historically,
you know, it's it's supposed to be about the act
(20:18):
of giving. And I really do love the fact that
you guys chose Tuesday because it doesn't detract from the
other days and it gives it its own day, which
it should be on Thursday. But you know, I think
that it is really important to bring it back to
the goal of thanksgiving.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Yeah, no, that's a really good point and giving thanks
and being with your family and your friends and no,
that's right.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
It's also a great contrast to getting a bogain. I'm like,
you know, I mean getting a boggain is if everyone
sort of likes to save money, but some people like
the thrill of actually getting the boguin itself. It's almost
like the thrill seeking activity is so off and I
(21:03):
don't think it really is one of the uplifting human characteristics,
you know. I'm like, you know, when you die, I say, oh,
but you know the thing about Sally, do you love
the bargain.
Speaker 3 (21:17):
Engraved?
Speaker 2 (21:18):
Yeah, what a bargain? Hants it? But because it's you know,
it might be fun, it might be meaningful as it's on.
But in general, living a meaningful human life, thanks and
giving and go together. Everyone I think is open to
(21:39):
thanks and if you have, you know, your middle class money,
give some of it up rights.
Speaker 4 (21:46):
It has it gotten better over the years progressively, the
giving on Tuesdays.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Or oh totally.
Speaker 1 (21:52):
And I think people love knowing if they give a
dollar that it's worth two dollars by having matches. So yeah,
that's going back to the boggain hunting. But actually it
is a bargain pieure, right, you can really get a
lot for your one hundred dollars donation. Now it's worth
two hundred dollars, and then you know it's really helping someone.
And you may not know how it helped somebody, right,
(22:14):
but it does. And a lot of the teens that
come to our teen program, I talked to them and gosh,
just that little donation, well one hundred dollars could be
a big donation for some people. It really helps them
and changes someone's life. So you can feel good about that.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
You know that with inflation, anybody who's growing up giving
so it gives you a church and you know, you
have you get stuck in thinking that a dollar is
a lot, and you know, fifty years ago, I'm seventy
five years old. Fifty years ago, seventy five years ago,
the dollar was a lot. It's not a lot there,
(22:51):
let me tell you. And you know, just your you're thinking.
So if you're a middle class person I mentioning one
hundred dollars, the size of the contribution is not as
big as the way it sounds. One hundred bucks sounds
like a lot to give, But believe me, if you
(23:11):
can afford a hundred, good, it's just show five hundred.
Come on.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Yeah, that's true.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
But I like to say, you know, people if they
can give at capacity, so it's everyone has a different capacity.
You know what kind of money they make a lot
of people like to focus on things like, well, you
know there's those mega donors now, you know, giving hundreds
of millions of dollars. It's true, but I think it's
the everyday person giving that truly makes a difference in
(23:38):
our community and in our country.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
And I would say to that, I would agree with it.
And it's non arithmetic. It's a spiritual thing. If everyone gives,
and if they give together, it's just a civic sacrament
that binds us together. It not only does good work,
it brings us together in a way that we know
(24:01):
that our our community cares. And I'm part of that
caring because of my ten dollars gifts, one hundred dollars gifts,
ten thousand dollars gift. Some people have ten thousand bucks.
Come on, man, it's spring well.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
And we also know that these big mega donors giving
you know, twenty million dollars one hundred thousand, one hundred
million dollars to charities.
Speaker 3 (24:23):
They're not going to.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
Focus on Poughkeepsie. They're not going to focus on the
Hudson Valley. Who's going to focus on the Hudson Valley?
The people that live here, and we all have to
care about our neighbor.
Speaker 2 (24:32):
And tell us how to get in touch with you,
because there are people who are going to want to
talk to you.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
You certainly can email me and it's at t p
r U n t Y t pronty at Family Services
NY dot org, or you can call me eight four
five three three seven eight two three six and our
address is twenty nine North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, one two
six oh one Family Services.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
And we certainly appreciate you being here on our Thanksgiving show,
and uh, we're all for thanks and we're all forgiving.
So thank you for Sidney Corvell our student perspective this
week as well as Chrich Puncy Uh, the vice president
for philanthropy Family Services, Happy Thanksgiving to everybody insight here
(25:21):
within ear range. Thanks
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