As the nation marked the seventh anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the New York Disaster Interfaith Services (NYDIS) issued a call for donations to save the last of the programs established to assist its victims. Without donations to support the New York City 9/11 Unmet Needs Roundtable, the program will be forced to close October 31, according to a NYDIS statement.
News that the roundtable would be dismantled because of the of a loss of major program funding was announced in July. The program was the sole remaining source of financial assistance for World Trade Center (WTC) responders and others affected by 9/11, NYDIS stated. The organization has distributed more than $7.5 million in assistance to more than 4,500 people since 2001.
Without new sources of charitable, city, or federal funding to continue the program, NYDIS believes many people with disabling WTC-related physical and mental illnesses will be at risk of eviction, foreclosure, and loss of utilities.
Donations can be made at the NYDIS secure donation page or by mail by sending a check payable to the NYDIS 9/11 Recovery Fund, 22 Cortland Street, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10007.
Jolie Breeden is the lead editor and science communicator for Natural Hazards Center publications. She writes and edits for Research Counts; the Quick Response, Mitigation Matters, Public Health, and Weather Ready Research Award report series; as well as for special projects and publications. Breeden graduated summa cum laude from the University of Colorado Boulder with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.